The Year of the Volunteer! 2009 Annual Report Letter from the President “A pessimist, they say, sees a glass of water as being half Board of Directors empty; an optimist sees the same glass as half full. But a giving person sees a glass of water and starts look- Chairman, Hon. Freddie Burton, Jr., ing for someone who might be thirsty.” Wayne County Probate Court - G. Donald Gale Vice Chair, Herman Gray, M.D., In 2009, The Youth Connection experienced a year of Children’s Hospital change. We changed our programming to better serve youth. We changed our operations to be more efficient and Secretary, Trisha Johnston, effective. And we changed our address. Twice. HP Throughout our year of change, however, our focus on serving the best interests of Treasurer, Paul VanTiem, youth in metropolitan Detroit never wavered. Our Youth Connection Career Academies St. John Health System program was a resounding success, with close to 300 youth receiving summer intern- ships. We held our Annual After-School Fair to encourage young people to participate N. Charles Anderson, in after-school programs and follow their passions in life. Detroit Urban League One constant endured throughout the year – our volunteers. When we sent out a call for Betty Brooks people to help renovate our new office space, our volunteers responded. Over 120 peo- Community Advocate ple dedicated over 2,200 hours to making our new headquarters a beautiful, functional space to allow us to serve our youth. When we needed help to put on our After-School Vernice Davis-Anthony, Fair, 100 plus people answered the call and got to work to make the Fair a success. Our Greater Detroit Area Health Council volunteers gave us the support we needed to get our work accomplished. Grenaé Dudley, Ph.D., Whether you volunteered for one hour or one hundred hours, I would like to thank you The Youth Connection for your dedication to The Youth Connection and our children. Chief Warren Evans, Sincerely, Detroit Police Department Teresa Gueyser, Grenaé Dudley, Ph.D. Detroit Public Schools President and CEO, The Youth Connection Elliott Hall, Letter from the Chairman, Board of Directors Dykema Gossett PLLC 2009 was an exciting year for us at The Youth Connec- Commissioner James Mack tion. It was also a year in which we learned the continu- Detroit Fire Department ing lesson that partnerships are what drive great youth programming. I would like to thank each and every one of Florine Mark, our partners who help us accomplish our goals that turn The WW Group Inc. around the lives of youth. Maurice McMurray, Thank you to all of our partners in The Youth Connection Health Alliance Plan Career Academies. As part of our program, almost 300 students received valuable summer internships, job training, skill development and Eunice Moore, other educational services. Detroit Public Schools Thank you to all of our funders and donors who make the work we do possible. It is Paul Riser, Jr., through your generosity that we can make brighter futures for our youth. Legacy Associates Foundation Finally, thank you to the Board of Directors, staff and volunteers for The Youth Frank Taylor, Connection that have given their time, talents and treasures to our organization. It is Taylor Restaurant Group through your hard work that we are able to achieve so much for our kids. Diann Woodard, Sincerely, American Fed. of School Administrators Pastor Marvin Winans The Honorable Freddie G. Burton, Jr. Perfecting Church Judge, Wayne County Probate court 2009 After-School Fair 2009 After-School Fair Our 8th Annual After-School Fair, held on the first day of the Sponsors Michigan State Fair at the State Fairgrounds, was a successful event (despite the rain) that showed parents and children what Michigan Department of Human Services fun and successful after-school programs were available in De- Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion troit. McDonald’s Delta Dental We had a thousand after-school program providers, parents, stu- Detroit Public Schools dents and others in attendance to enjoy our event and the many EDS offerings of Michigan’s final State Fair. The After-School Fair HAP was held in partnership with Detroit Public Schools, who pro- DMC Children’s Hospital moted their “I’m In” campaign all week long at the State Fair. Michigan State Fair and Exposition Center Children’s Hospital distributed free bicycle helmets to children and the Department of Health and Wellness Promotion provided information on free child immunizations! University of Detroit Dental School gave away free toothbrushes and many other or- ganizations provided free back-to-school giveaways to make our Fair a one-stop shop for parents to get their children ready to go back to after-school as well as back to school. Marshall We would like to give a special thanks to our sponsors who make Mathers events like this possible with their generous contributions. Foundation The Youth Connection Office Renovation In addition to the many hours spent training and nurturing the youth in our programs, TYC undertook a major challenge upon moving to the State Fairgrounds in January. We moved our headquarters to the former Volunteer Headquarters for the Michigan State Fair - a building badly in need of massive renovation to be suitable as offices.With the help of many volunteers and countless hours working into the night, we transformed the building into a wonderful base of operations on a shoestring budget. The Youth Connection would like to thank all of our volunteers for their help on this project. Without you, none of this would have been possible. Before After After Before After Before After Before After Before Before After 2009 Volunteer Roll Call In January, The Youth Connection moved its headquarters from our office space at 333 W. Fort Street to a building on the Michigan State Fairgrounds. In addition to the cost savings of the move, this was also an opportunity to utilize the Fair Grounds to expand our programming and to give our youth additional space for trainings, workshops and other events that would be beneficial to our youth. When we arrived at our new office space, the entire building was in need of major repair and renovation and with little donor appetite to fund capital improvements. To that end, we went to work contacting businesses, funders, friends, families and others to help us make our new space usable as our headquarters. Much to our delight, we had an overwhelming response from strangers and friends, businesses we work with on a regular basis and those that we didn’t know but who wanted to help our kids succeed. 122 people helped transform our headquarters into a great space! The Youth Connection would like to thank the following individuals who helped in the renovation of our office space at the State Fairgrounds. Your contribution to our agency was a huge lift to us - we couldn’t have done it without the help of each and every one of you! Thank you to all of our outstanding volunteers! Louie Abbo George Fortis Ian Marshall Scott Shipe Mario Allen Stephon Fulks Craig Martin Joyce Smith Alisa Ambers DeAndre Gaines Maurice McMurray Teca Sneed Kwaku Atara Dyan Gegus Demetrius McCamey Lt. Robert Stokes Henry Bates Darlene Glass Dave McCatty Michael Strahan Rick Bergquist Timothy Goodin Claudia McDuffie Nathan Stull Jeron Blanton William Graham Claude McDuffie Ashley Taylor Brian Bourdage Jennelle Graham Simmie McKinzie Frank Taylor Daryl Brown Christopher Griffith Gwendolyn Miller Jeffrey Thomas Pierre Brown-Turner Mohammed Gulley Marla Moiseev Jernell Thompson Tammy Bryant Greg Harland Rico Morris Kim Thompson Avery Buggs Terry Herbert Shawn Mossing Ernesto Torres Alan Burnette DeAngelo Herron Phares Noel Amanda Traaseth Chris Butterfield Howard Hill Phares Noel III Brian Vivian Sarah Chapman Yeniece Hill Sue O’Connor Daryl Urban Steve Check Karen Holm Martin Paris Jim Walsh Paul Christensen Ray Holm Brandon Parker Sarah Weed Nick Colston Ryan Holm Changamire Parker Tara Whipkey Collette Cook Caleb Howard Trevor Patton Ken White Elizabeth Cousin Myron Jenkins Jim Peterson Derrick Williams Lamar Cross* Steve Jenkins Brian Plauman Brittney Williams David Cross Christopher Johnson Nadine Ploskonka Caleugene Williams Sandi Dailan Trisha Johnston Frank Ploskonka David Wilson Joe DeMarco Donna Jones Richard Putty Darrin Wyatt VaShun Dennis Charles Jones Lamont Rimmer Arthur Young Fredrick Donaldson* Kathryn Jones Roddy Rivers Christopher Zamora Elizabeth Edwards Greg Jozel Crystal Roberts Bob Essian Morgan Lewis Eugene Sanders * Denotes Volunteer of Anthony Facione Bryan Liddell Dolly Schwartz the Year Recipients Rina Flow Brian Louwers Harvey Sellers William Floyd Kelvin Lumpkin Darren Shavinski LaMarr Ford Damarrieo Malone Lisa Shimko 2009 Volunteer Roll Call The Youth Connection would also like to thank the following businesses who supported our efforts to create a new headquarters: Leumas Group, LLC ADT Home Security Systems Faith Management, Inc. City Year Detroit Thornton & Grooms, Inc. A. Philip Randolph Career and Technical Center The Home Depot Northridge Church Usher Team Ryan Building Materials, Inc. Northridge Church Small Group Murray Lighting & Electrical Supply Company, Inc. Gentz Industries Donald E. McNabb Company, Inc. Coiffures by Charles Lowe’s Home Improvement City of Detroit Water Department Frank Taylor Management Group Crazy Horse Painting Rogers Electric Supply Company Michael United States Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 26 Fredrick Donaldson (Independent Contractor) TZ Flooring EDS, an HP Company Daryl Urban (Independent Contractor) Electrical Technologies Systems H.A. Smith Lumber & Hardware Co. The Youth Connection Staff Essian Painting Company Weight Watchers 2009 Volunteers of the Year Fredrick Donaldson and Lamar Cross The Youth Connection would like to salute two volunteers who spent countless hours, days and weeks renovating our headquarters to on the State Fairgrounds. Without their effort and deter- mination, our relocation and renovation would have been extremely difficult.