SUFK Worcester Welcomes a New Co-Executive Director

We are pleased to announce Liz Burrows, Assistant Executive Director, has stepped up to the position of Co-Executive Director for StandUp For Kids - Worcester. Liz has maintained the program budget for the last six months and also led the effort to establish a Backpack Outreach Program within the Worcester School System. We are excited to have her serving as our direct contact with the StandUp For Kids National Office!

2nd Annual Worcester Talent Showcase in the Works!
In April, we held our 1st Annual Worcester Talent Showcase event with performances from some fine local talent (poets, musicians, and dancers). We held this event as the kick off to our 24 Hours on the Street event. As it takes a good deal of time and effort, we have both decided to hold it separate from our 24 Hours on the Street event and begin the planning process this summer. The event will be held sometime in January 2011. We'll keep you posted on the details. Any entertainers interested in participating in the event can contact worcester@standupforkids.org.

The Outreach Stats for May 2010

How many kids did we provide outreach services to in May 2010?

Good question! Here's the stats:

We assisted 11 regular kids.
We assisted 65 new kids.
We provided 12 kids with meals.

Many of these kids ask about other services. We always provide them with a brochure of local services, including food pantries, overnight shelters, and important hotlines. Our counselors act as liaisons between these kids and the local services within the Worcester community.

Do you know where you can get a free meal? Free health care? An overnight bed?

No.

Neither do most of our kids.

Join our outreach program. Contact worcester@standupforkids.org for details on the next information session.

The SUFK - Worcester Spring Newsletter is Here!

Read all about our latest accomplishments and upcoming events!

StandUp For Kids - Worcester Spring 2010 Newsletter (PDF)

Have questions about our program? Curious to find out more. Email us at worcester@standupforkids.org.

Chalk on the Streets: This Saturday!
Come draw with us at the Downtown Common this Saturday at 10:30 a.m. We'll be in front of City Hall. Look for us in the purple shirts!

Check out the updated StandUp For Kids website

The National Site Gets Jazzed Up
The National StandUp For Kids website has been redesigned. Check out the changes at www.standupforkids.org. Feel free to e-mail us with your thoughts on it. We'd love to hear from you all.

Also, check out our program site. We are currently redesigning it and revamping the content: http://www.standupforkids.org/worcester/. Plus note that our program site URL has changed (if you have it saved as a favorite, don't forget to change it).

Help Needed: Our Outreach Drop-in Center
The Worcester program has a great outreach drop-in center we run on Saturday afternoons (12:00 to 4:00). Lately, we've had trouble covering all four hours and could really use some extra outreach counselors. If you are available on Saturday afternoons and want to help youth within your community build their life skills, please contact us at worcester@standupforkids.org.

Come Draw with Us on Saturday, June 12th!

Save the Date:
Chalk on the Streets/Turn Purple Campaign
Saturday, June 12th, 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Worcester Downtown Common (Sidewalk in front of City Hall)
Questions? Email worcester@standupforkids.org

What is Chalk on the Streets?
Mari Sayama (Director of Community Resource Development) proposed an awareness event to us last Fall called Chalk on the Streets. Since the initial idea, we have held two Chalk on the Streets events.

Our volunteers show up at in front of City Hall (Downtown Worcester) with a box full of chalk and start drawing youth homelessness statistics on the sidewalks. We also replicate the StandUp For Kids logo using a pretty nifty stencil made by Mari Sayama.

While drawing, we answer questions from those passing by about StandUp For Kids and about youth homelessness. Plus, anyone can come draw with us! So stop on by and have some fun.

Or

Turn the Streets Purple!
In the Spring 2008, Kristina England (Director of Adult Training) came across a great awareness event called the Turn Purple Campaign on the StandUp For Kids - Philadelphia website.

All you have to do is dress in all purple and hand out fliers to passersby about the number reason for youth homelessness: child abuse. Plus, you can paint your face purple, too! That's completely optional as we hear at least one volunteer does some pretty lopsided smile faces (in fact it might be the same girl that discovered the event).

Or

Just come and talk to our volunteers during both events. We love getting to know the great people of the Worcester community. Just look for us in our Purple shirts.

Father's Fest - June 12, 2010
That's right, we are busy beavers on Saturday, June 12th. If you are busy on Saturday morning and can't make it to our awareness event, feel free to stop by our table at Father's Fest from 12:00 t0 4:00 at Institute Park. We've got a great new crossword puzzle that even some of our longest running volunteers can't solve... Thank you to Liz Burrows for her continued marketing creativity.

Welcome Diane Racine and Jason Goranson!
We have two new volunteers! Diane Racine has joined the program as an outreach counselor. Jason Goranson will focus on grant writing and fund development.

Saying Farewell to Ally Trull, Director of Outreach

Earlier this month, we mentioned that Ally Trull, our first Director of Outreach, will leave us at the end of this month. Ally has contributed countless hours to the StandUp For Kids - Worcester chapter over the past three years. In honor of all her hard work and commitment, we recognized her during our Spring 2010 Volunteer Appreciation Party.

In picture (counter clockwise): Ally Trull, Donna Katsoudas (Executive Director), Liz Burrows (Assistant Executive Director), Jeff Burrows (Volunteer), Sue Kramer (Director of Kid Development), Cleon McClure (Co-Director of Adult Training), Jose Alvarez (New Director of Outreach), Kristina England (Co-Director of Adult Training).

Ally was presented with a scrapbook and some nifty little gifts before she leaves for a summer of volunteering. We hope to see her back in the Fall, perhaps with a job somewhere in central Massachusetts (Fingers crossed).

Ally's Last Street Outreach
Ally Trull conducted her last street outreach this week. Ally was joined by four members of the street outreach team: Jose Alvarez, Austin Eisele (Outreach Counselor), Kristina England, and Donna Katsoudas. We met several new kids during street outreach and even recruited a perspective volunteer for our June 16th information session.

Passing the Torch: Jose Alvarez, New Director of Outreach
We are excited to announce that Jose Alvarez has stepped into the position of Director of Outreach. Jose has been part of the outreach team for two years. He is best described as a lovable teddy bear by the other outreach counselors. Jose's responsibilities will include providing outreach updates to the street outreach team, managing the street outreach schedule, and most importantly, acting as a liaison between our kids and the many local services within the Worcester community. Ally Trull has transferred her wealth of knowledge to Jose. As an outreach counselor said, "It's tough shoes to fill" but we know Jose can do it!

Hard Shoes to Fill: Ken Latham, Co-Executive Director
It's with much sadness that we announce Ken Latham's departure from the Co-Executive Director position at SUFK - Worcester. Ken was our direct contact to the National Office. He maintained our monthly reports and provided us with all the latest news from National. Ken also served as an outreach counselor for a year. His presence will be truly missed. We wish him the best in his future ventures.

Upcoming Events
Today (right now actually), three of our volunteers are participating in the Worcester Police Youth Summit. Liz Burrows (Assistant Executive Director), Jeff Burrows (Volunteer), and Rob Donnelly (Volunteer) are running an information table at the event to get the word out about youth homelessness in the Worcester community. Liz also unveiled some new handouts today - a StandUp For Kids Crossword Puzzle and a StandUp For Kids Word Search. Liz definitely wins most creative volunteer for such exciting awareness materials!

This weekend, new volunteer Cleon McClure will step into the Co-Director of Adult Training position. He will co-train new volunteers with Kristina England.

We've got new volunteers

Over the last few months, StandUp For Kids - Worcester has welcomed the following new volunteers:

• Angela Della Porta
• Brian Finley
• Cleon McClure
• Kathy Senior
• Michelle Varner

The program currently has 25 volunteers. We are proud to have each and every one of them. Their commitment and passion is what makes us a success.

Thank You to Ally Trull
After two years as Director of Outreach, Ally Trull has stepped down from the position. Ally is graduating from Clark University in a couple weeks and will be leaving the area to pursue future endeavors. Her dedication and insight over the past three years has helped bring the program to where it is today. We'll miss you, Ally!

Join Our Great Group of Volunteers!
Our next information session is Wednesday, May 12th, 7:00 p.m. at Wesley United Methodist, 114 Main Street, Worcester. Please contact worcester@standupforkids.org for more details.