CYNY Zone Update – Harlem

Led by Harlem Zone Director, Scott Edwards, City Year now partners with six elementary schools (PS 112/206, 30, 85, PS/IS 50, CS 133 and PS/MS 57) and runs Young Heroes and City Heroes out of MS 45 and Harlem Renaissance High School respectively. We have partnered with valuable organizations such as the Children’s Aid Society at PS/IS 50 who offer support with our after school programs. “We have been serving in Harlem since City Year New York was founded, the neighborhood knew of our commitment but after opening an office it really cements our place in Harlem, last minute meetings can happen without my teams having to travel to the main office on 22nd street”, said Edwards.

On November 25th, nearly one hundred students, parents, teachers, and school staff gathered at P.S. 112/206 to celebrate the fellowship within their school and the advent of their relationship with City Year. This “first date” includes an evening out for a spaghetti dinner and a movie. This all-school event “Pasta and a Picture” was a success for City Year and first year partners P.S. 112/206. The PS 112/206 team prepared a spaghetti dinner and showed a family friendly movie in the school’s auditorium. Teachers and staff were surprised by the large turnout, setting the bar high for City Year events to come. Three teams also participated in running Common Cents’ Penny Harvest program which raised over 570 lbs (approximately $1,000) during the month long collection period.

The Harlem teams have also run a successful canned food drive as part of Do Something’s “Feed the Need” food drive to collect 1 million pounds of food. This canned food drive collected items from community members who continued to learn about City Year. The events throughout the zone culminated on December 15th when the Harlem teams held the first ever zone open house at SCAN-Laguardia Memorial House on 116th street. The event, designed to share the City Year corps experience within the zone community, drew over 25 current and prospective applicants.

City Year is deepening our impact in the communities we serve. With dedicated staffing and operational resources in our target communities, we are better poised to meet local needs and strengthen relationships.

Usher rocking his City Year jacket in his video for "Hush"

Our pal Usher dropped a new single a few weeks ago and look what pops up at 2:47!

Check out the official video on youtube.

Bain Service Day 12/12

Bain joined CYNY at C.S. 133 in Harlem for a great day of service on December 12th. Over 150 Bain employees ran literacy lessons, recreational activities and painted continet themed murals on all 3 floors of the school. We were delighted to be joined by Bain’s New York leadership including Bill Neuenfeldt and Gary Clare. Thanks Bain!

Why I Serve – Peter Romano

“My name is Peter Romano, I am 22 years old, and I grew up in Pelham, New York. After completing my junior year of college at the New School, I decided to put my own academic career on hold in order to spend time working with City Year. I came to City Year because I feel the need to participate in what I hope will one day become a larger service movement. I chose City Year specifically because of its involvement in schools. City Year allows me to pursue my love of teaching while building upon the foundations of my dream for a proud society, while working with the most diverse and interesting group of my peers that I could have ever hoped to have met.

I am proud to serve on the Long Island City Young Heroes Team in Queens, New York, and I tell this to everybody that I meet. On this team, we devise and operate a free, Saturday service learning and leadership development program for local middle school students. We give them a unique opportunity to gain a hands-on understanding about the problems affecting their communities, as well as the leadership tools that they need in order to make a difference. My work at City Year is far from easy, but the overwhelmingly positive response that I receive from the youth has made the effort worthwhile. With my role as the team’s Events & Operations Coordinator, I seek to unite my youth with their classmates and their neighbors. I do this by delivering the leadership that they need in order to plan and lead their own path to civic unity.

My work here matters because the youth matter. By engaging the youth, I allow them to share and participate in my dream: the Civic Renaissance. My dream will be realized when our society learns to unite regularly, voluntarily, and wholeheartedly in order to assist in the progress of its own well-being. The key to the Civic Renaissance is the youth, because by getting people involved at an early age, they will be able to dedicate their entire lifetimes to building upon their commitment to service.

Every hour that I spend with the youth in this community is a strong expression of my civic pride. There is not a day that goes by where I don’t wish that I had been given the same opportunities that City Year gives these kids everyday. Their enthusiasm lets me know that they appreciate my work, and I am encouraged by their eagerness to participate. The impact that they have had on me has changed my life forever, and it is my belief that, together, we will be able to build the foundations of my dream for the Civic Renaissance.”

The Heroes program begins in January and run through May, meeting about three Saturdays a month in East Harlem, Long Island City or the South Bronx. If you are interested in volunteering as a team leader for our program please contact Danielle Wolfe at 212.452.8881