Team Kids Fosters Passion for Community Service...
05/16/09 08:52
Team Kids Fosters Passion for Community Service among Irvine Children
Community leaders team up with New Horizon students to mentor and inspire service through
4-week Team Kids Challenge!
Press Release
Team Kids Fosters Passion for Community Service among Irvine Children
Community leaders team up with New Horizon students to mentor and inspire service through
4-week Team Kids Challenge!
Irvine, CA – May 15, 2009 – It’s never too early to start giving back to the community.
This idea is the driving force behind the work of Team Kids, an Irvine-grown non-profit organization that gives children and teenagers opportunities to partner with community leaders on projects that benefit local, national and international causes.
“Our goal is to inspire young people to become responsible citizens with a passion for community service,” says Founder/CEO Julie Hudash. “And while our programs give children a chance to do something for their community, they also teach values and skills that will help kids make good choices in their own lives.”
Team Kids’ signature program, the school-based Team Kids Challenge, was kicked off at Irvine’s New Horizon Elementary, a private, non-profit Islamic school on Friday. This inspirational assembly brought together preschool through 6th grade students with role models — police, firefighters, and mentors from the community — to work as a team focused on four-week challenge goals to strengthen their community. Week one will team New Horizon students up with Irvine’s Families Forward as they bring in the food “they like to eat” to fill two large barrels of food for the hungry. The second week’s goal will focus on the importance of literacy, as students bring in over 500 of their gently used books, serve as “Book Doctors” to clean and restore the books, and then donate them to Orange County’s Early Literacy Project. The book donations will then be donated through clinics and schools to children who don’t have books of their own. The third week focuses on Orange County’s homelessness issue. Students will work to fill an entire passenger van with their gently used toys and clothes to support the homeless and working poor through Santa Ana’s Southwest Community Center. Week four empowers all 200+ students as environmental advocates as they collect plastic bottles and aluminum cans, with proceeds going to the International Bird Rescue Research Center which rescues sea birds injured due to ocean pollution.
At the end of their four-week challenges, the 4-6 graders who volunteer to serve on the Team Kids Leadership Team host a youth-led, school-wide carnival to raise funds for a charity that they themselves -- the students -- have identified. 100% of what students raise goes to the charity of their choice.
More than 20,000 children have participated in the Team Kids Challenge since 2001. Collectively, kids have raised over $200,000 for local charities during youth-led efforts.
Team Kids programs have made positive impacts on children’s feelings of self-efficacy, leadership capacity, their desire to help others, and perceptions of being important contributors to their schools and the community. What’s the secret to Team Kids’ success? It’s a close collaboration with the Irvine Unified School District, the City of Irvine, Irvine Police Department, Orange County Fire Authority, University of California, Irvine, and a host of other community partners.
“This is prevention. If our officers are in the schools, building relationships with kids and honoring them for being leaders in our community, then it’s likely we won’t see these kids in trouble down the line,” said Irvine Police Chief Dave Maggard.
Orange County Fire Authority Captain Stephen McHale adds, “Adults become cynical about change. It’s so inspiring to work with children who truly believe that anything is possible.”
About Team Kids
Team Kids strengthens innovative community collaborations that empower young people to become resilient and responsible citizens with a passion for service through its school-based and community-wide programs. While serving, students develop the values and skills that enable them to make positive choices in their own lives, while making a difference in the lives of others. For more information, visit the Team Kids Web site: www.teamkids.org
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Press Release Contact: Linda Ames 949-300-2545 linda.ames@cox.net
Press Release Contact: Linda Ames 949-300-2545 linda.ames@cox.net
Team Kids Fosters Passion for Community Service among Irvine Children
Community leaders team up with New Horizon students to mentor and inspire service through
4-week Team Kids Challenge!
Irvine, CA – May 15, 2009 – It’s never too early to start giving back to the community.
This idea is the driving force behind the work of Team Kids, an Irvine-grown non-profit organization that gives children and teenagers opportunities to partner with community leaders on projects that benefit local, national and international causes.
“Our goal is to inspire young people to become responsible citizens with a passion for community service,” says Founder/CEO Julie Hudash. “And while our programs give children a chance to do something for their community, they also teach values and skills that will help kids make good choices in their own lives.”
Team Kids’ signature program, the school-based Team Kids Challenge, was kicked off at Irvine’s New Horizon Elementary, a private, non-profit Islamic school on Friday. This inspirational assembly brought together preschool through 6th grade students with role models — police, firefighters, and mentors from the community — to work as a team focused on four-week challenge goals to strengthen their community. Week one will team New Horizon students up with Irvine’s Families Forward as they bring in the food “they like to eat” to fill two large barrels of food for the hungry. The second week’s goal will focus on the importance of literacy, as students bring in over 500 of their gently used books, serve as “Book Doctors” to clean and restore the books, and then donate them to Orange County’s Early Literacy Project. The book donations will then be donated through clinics and schools to children who don’t have books of their own. The third week focuses on Orange County’s homelessness issue. Students will work to fill an entire passenger van with their gently used toys and clothes to support the homeless and working poor through Santa Ana’s Southwest Community Center. Week four empowers all 200+ students as environmental advocates as they collect plastic bottles and aluminum cans, with proceeds going to the International Bird Rescue Research Center which rescues sea birds injured due to ocean pollution.
At the end of their four-week challenges, the 4-6 graders who volunteer to serve on the Team Kids Leadership Team host a youth-led, school-wide carnival to raise funds for a charity that they themselves -- the students -- have identified. 100% of what students raise goes to the charity of their choice.
More than 20,000 children have participated in the Team Kids Challenge since 2001. Collectively, kids have raised over $200,000 for local charities during youth-led efforts.
Team Kids programs have made positive impacts on children’s feelings of self-efficacy, leadership capacity, their desire to help others, and perceptions of being important contributors to their schools and the community. What’s the secret to Team Kids’ success? It’s a close collaboration with the Irvine Unified School District, the City of Irvine, Irvine Police Department, Orange County Fire Authority, University of California, Irvine, and a host of other community partners.
“This is prevention. If our officers are in the schools, building relationships with kids and honoring them for being leaders in our community, then it’s likely we won’t see these kids in trouble down the line,” said Irvine Police Chief Dave Maggard.
Orange County Fire Authority Captain Stephen McHale adds, “Adults become cynical about change. It’s so inspiring to work with children who truly believe that anything is possible.”
About Team Kids
Team Kids strengthens innovative community collaborations that empower young people to become resilient and responsible citizens with a passion for service through its school-based and community-wide programs. While serving, students develop the values and skills that enable them to make positive choices in their own lives, while making a difference in the lives of others. For more information, visit the Team Kids Web site: www.teamkids.org
####
Press Release Contact: Linda Ames 949-300-2545 linda.ames@cox.net
Press Release Contact: Linda Ames 949-300-2545 linda.ames@cox.net
