Community Values Youth, July Asset Of The Month

Photograph by Reverend Steve Waites

Young people perceive that adults in the community value children and youth.

This document is designed to help adults throughout Santa Clara County develop materials and activities to promote the asset of adult role models.

Newsletter Content

The following text may be used in organizational newsletters. Please include the attribution at the end of the article.

Community Values Youth

Research shows that youth who feel valued in their community enjoy better mental health; a greater sense of personal control and optimism; reduced crime, violence, and fighting; less substance abuse; and higher academic performance.  Unfortunately, in Silicon Valley, Community Values Youth is by far the least reported asset.  In Project Cornerstones 2011 survey, only 33% of 4^th-6^th graders and 22% of 7^th through 12^th graders reported that they feel valued by their community.  To help raise awareness of the importance of community respect of young people, July is Community values Youth month in Silicon Valley.

Frequently, adults feel that youth already know that they’re valued and appreciated, but the survey results show that this is not true. Young people are not fully connected to their community if they only feel they are valued by adults who they know. All adults have a role to play in showing their support for youth.  

The following discussion topics can help you work with young people to identify ways that the community does, and does not, provide them with this asset.

· Do you ever encounter adults who have negative opinions about people your age? Do you know how to respond politely and positively to their criticism or comments?  

· Are there good places for kids your age to hang out after school and on the weekends?  It there aren’t, what kind of place would you like to see?

· Do you feel that adults at school and other organizations give you an opportunity to voice your opinion? Can you suggest some way that adults could make it easier for kids to share their feedback and suggestions?

Community Values Youth is linked to other external assets. Children and teens will feel valued by the community when adults provide them with opportunities to make meaningful contributions, programs that help them make constructive use of their time, and support so that they feel important to the people in their world. The more effective that we are as a community at building assets in general, the more effective we will be at raising the levels of this asset.

This article was provided courtesy of Project Cornerstone’s Asset-a-Month program.

For more information, visit www.projectcornerstone.org.

Activities

The activities below are a starting point to help adults find ways to show youth that they are valued and appreciated.

For Families

• Many programs young people enjoy are created and maintained by the community (e.g., libraries, parks, and playgrounds). Make sure your children understand that these resources are available because the community cares about them!

• Your children can participate in community life! Help them identify issues that affect young people. Write letters to newspapers or government officials about ways to address their concerns.

• Encourage your children to write letters of thanks to the organizations and businesses that treat young people well. Doing so will encourage them to continue their efforts. Your child’s letter may be publicly displayed.

For Adults

• Remember to treat all young people with respect, and take their ideas and suggestions seriously.

• If you work in a business, train your staff to treat young people respectfully. Make sure that your policies are youth-friendly. If your business serves adults who may have children with them, make sure the space is inviting and provides age-appropriate activities.

• Celebrate youth who help your organization daily.

• Attend and contribute to local government meetings to make sure that the needs of young people are being addressed.

At school or in youth programs

• Ask businesses in the community to show support for your program. In addition to financial donations and sponsorship, they can display artwork, host tours of their facility, or find other ways to show that they care about the youth in the community. (Doing so makes good business sense—today’s kids are tomorrow’s customers!)

• With older children and teens, discuss whether the community has good places for kids and teens to hang out, and if there are more positive opportunities for younger kids than for older ones. Use the results to create an action plan to make adults in the community more aware of the issue.

• Invite important members of the community to attend shows and events.

AUGUST Asset of the Month: Caring Neighborhood!

If you or your organization can share ideas for positive, creative activities for young people, please contact us at (408) 351-6482 or by email at info@projectcornerstone.org.

About the Asset-a-Month Program

The goals of the Silicon Valley Asset-a-Month program are to help align adults throughout our diverse community in their efforts to promote positive youth development by fostering developmental assets. For more information about the Asset-a-Month program, contact Project Cornerstone at (408) 351-6482 or info@projectcornerstone.org.

Reverend Felecia Mulvany, D.D.

President, Sacred Foundations, Inc.

revmulvany@sacredfoundations.net

www.sacredfoundations.net

877-877-4275

First Celebration, All Welcome

Sacred Foundations, Inc. has some exciting news to share!

We now have space for our spiritual gatherings.  We invite you to join us for our very first Spiritual Gathering, June 17th.

Date:  Sunday June 17, 2018 

Time:  10:30 am.

Place:  Laughing Giraffe Therapy Center100 O'Connor Dr. #14San Jose, Ca. 95118

Laughing Giraffe is located just of Stevens Creek Blvd and Highway 880, and is on the other side of 880 from Valley Fair Mall and Santana Row.

June 17th is Father’s Day so feel free to bring something that represents your father, or fathering energy, to place on the Altar.Love, Light and Blessing,

Reverend Felecia Mulvany, D.D.

President, Sacred Foundations, Inc.

revmulvany@sacredfoundations.net

www.sacredfoundations.net

877-877-4275

Keeping Your Inner Glow

The most important thing we could do in life is to strengthen our spiritual connection with God. As metaphysics teaches us, there is no religion higher than truth. To find your inner joy, as the Christ said, "Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God, and all else shall be added unto you." This is why when we connect to God through the Christ light through devotion, prayer and meditation, all of humanity is blessed. There are no easy shortcuts to find true happiness. Mystics throughout the ages know this secret. It is the basis of all true religions which transcends the psychic realms. We are all meant to rise above to find true peace and freedom. Let not your heart be troubled in difficult times. God is always with us to lead us through the darkness. Love is the true healer that we all eventually find on the spiritual path.

Dr. Pamela McHenry, DD, HHP, MA, MSc., CNC, CCMH, CCMA

Sacred Foundations, Inc. Board Member

Certified Holistic Health Practitioner; 

Certified Direct Divine Light Healing Practitioner and Associate Teacher at Spiritual Arts Institute, Encinitas, California

Lighten Your Body, Enlighten Your Mind

415-640-5868

www.TimeForMe.com

Say Yes to a Beautiful Radiant Aura

Safety - June Developmental Asset

Young people feel safe at home, at school, and in the neighborhood.

This document is designed to help adults throughout Santa Clara County develop materials and activities to promote the asset of adult role models.

Newsletter Content

The following text may be used in organizational newsletters. Please include the attribution at the end of the article.

 The Importance of Safety

Feeling safe at home, at school, and in the community is necessary for young people’s health and wellbeing. There are multiple elements of safety for young people, all of which are important to help children thrive. These elements include safety from accidents and hazards, safety from crime and violence, and safety from bullying and harassment, just to name a few.

For young people, feeling unsafe often results physical, emotional, and social consequences. Youth who feel unsafe skip school more often, achieve less academically, have fewer friends, and are more likely to bring weapons to school.

In Project Cornerstone’s 2011 survey, only 62% of 4th-6th graders and 47% of 7th-12th graders reported that they feel safe at home, at school, and in their neighborhoods. To help raise awareness of the importance of safety to youth’s psychological as well as physical wellbeing, June is Safety month in Silicon Valley.

The following discussion topics can help young people identify the ways and locations where they do, and do not, feel safe, and promote conversations about how to improve safety for themselves and others.

• Has anything happened at school, in the neighborhood, at the mall, or anywhere else to make you feel unsafe, afraid, or worried?

• Do you know what to in case of an earthquake? Fire? Serious injury or illness?

• If you or a friend were being bullied, what would you do?

While safety is a critical concern, it’s also important that adults help young people understand that small risks are normal. Sometimes overstressing safety can lead children to avoid healthy risks that help them grow. Helping young people learn to manage their own safety and react in case of emergency will help them develop confidence and independence that will serve them well throughout their lives.

This article was provided courtesy of Project Cornerstone’s Asset-a-Month program. For more information, visit www.projectcornerstone.org.

Activities

For Families

• Does everyone understand the rules about answering the phone, opening the door to strangers, spending time at home alone? Work together on rules that everyone can agree upon and follow.

• Does everyone understand where to go and what to do in a fire or other emergency? Practice fire and earthquake drills so that children can easily recall the instructions during the stress and confusion of an actual event. Together, identify at least three neighbors to whom your children can go in case of an emergency at home.

• Hold honest, open, and age-appropriate discussions with your children about personal safety, avoiding dangerous situations, and what to do if they feel threatened.

• Talk to your children about bullying, including what to do if they or their peers are being bullied. Bullying is a form of intimidation, and directly impacts young people’s sense of personal safety and comfort.

For All Adults

• Make your home a safe place for all children in the neighborhood to go if they’re threatened, hurt, or lost.

• Create or serve on a neighborhood watch group for your community.

• Be an “ask-able adult” who youth can go to when they have questions or concerns about their safety.

• Model safe behaviors! Wear a helmet when you ride a bicycle and fasten your seat-belt in the car.

• Pay attention to what’s going on with the youth around you, and intervene if it seems that someone is being threatened, harassed, or bullied, or if youth are engaging in unsafe behaviors.

At school or in youth programs

• Take a safety walk! Canvass the area with youth to identify places where people might get hurt or threatened, and discuss where the young people do and don’t feel safe at the site. Brainstorm ways to address the issues, and work with the administration or facility staff to solve the problems.

• Create and communicate clearly defined rules for physical behaviors as well as interpersonal behaviors. It’s important that youth know that bullying is not acceptable. Discuss and role-play ways that youth can stand up for themselves and their peers if they’re being bullied. Make sure that youth understand the importance of reporting bullying incidents and the difference between reporting and “telling.”

• Involve parents and caretakers in safety discussions to ensure message consistency and reinforcement

Resources

• Take 25 (http://www.take25.org) is a program of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children encouraging parents to take 25 minutes to discuss safety issues with their children. Their list of conversation starters at http://www.take25.org/res/pdf/Take_25_Conversation_Starters.pdf covers online and offline personal safety topics for young children, tweens, and teenagers.

• Electronic bullying online or through mobile phones, known as “cyberbullying,” is a growing phenomenon, especially with the relative anonymity for bullies. A good resource to help youth understand the issues is http://www.stopcyberbullying.org. For adults, http://www.cyberbullying.us  serves as a clearinghouse for the latest research and information about cyberbullying.

• For K-12 schools, Project Cornerstone offers the Expect Respect peer abuse and bullying prevention workshop. With the guidance of a skilled facilitator, teams of diverse students develop leadership skills and action plans to promote healthy behaviors and reduce bullying on campus. Contact Project Cornerstone at (408) 351-6482 or info@projectcornerstone.org for more information.

About the Asset-a-Month Program

The goals of the Silicon Valley Asset-a-Month program are to help align adults throughout our diverse community in their efforts to promote positive youth development by fostering developmental assets. For more information about the Asset-a-Month program, contact Project Cornerstone at (408) 351-6482 or info@projectcornerstone.org.

Reverend Felecia Mulvany, D.D.

President, Sacred Foundations, Inc.

revmulvany@sacredfoundations.net

www.sacredfoundations.net

877-877-4275