Alcoa Teams Up With City Year To Clean Up

by Aaron Benson, Service Leader at City Year New York

On Monday, City Year joined forces with the Central Park Conservancy and Alcoa to beautify Central Park.  We were able to remove debris from Sheep’s Meadow, a much needed project that will enable park visitors to fully utilize the park.  Alcoa brought out 38 volunteers to serve alongside the 25 Corps Members they sponsor at PS 48 and MS 424. This was a unique day, providing a space and time for the Alcoans and their corps members to not only serve together, but to get to know one another through meaningful conversation and team building activities.

(c) Michael Simon

“Working with motivated and caring professionals to do service is an opportunity I may not have again until after college. It’s really inspiring to see that Alcoa not only sponsors us in our school service, but is willing to get their hands dirty and demonstrate their true commitment to service and the betterment of the community.”  – Lindsay Korsen, Alcoa Corps Member at PS 48

After the service was complete, we gathered to dedicate 20 new recycling bins to the park. We were joined by Carl the Can Man for a lively recycling competition. We are incredibly grateful to Alcoa CEO Klaus Kleinfeld, who joined us on the day alongside Doug Blonsky, the president of the Central Park Conservatory. Thank you Alcoa for another inspiring day!

(c) Michael Simon

Red Jackets Go Green!

Yesterday we joined forces with the New York Restoration Project to celebrate Earth Day.  The Third Annual “Root for New York Corporate Challenge” brought more than 250 employees volunteers representing “New York City’s Greenest Corporate Citizens” to plant trees along the streets of East New York, Brooklyn and green a local elementary school.

The Root for New York Corporate Challenge is one of many events taking place this spring to support Million Trees NYC, a public-private partnership between New York Restoration Project and the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation through which one million new trees will be planted and cared for across NYC’s five boroughs by 2017. To date, more than 435,000 trees have been planted throughout New York as part of Million Trees NYC.

Click to See Slideshow

We would like to thank our lead sponsors American Express and Deutsche Bank, who are collectively bringing more than 100 employees to help beautify the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York. Other corporations supporting and participating in the day’s tree planting and ecological activities include Fred Alger Management, The New York Palace, Legg Mason, Metropolitan Recycling, and CA Technologies.

Five Things Friday

1. 8th Annual One Harlem Community Service Day: Saturday, May 7, 2011Projects will include painting murals, landscaping in community gardens and parks, light construction and a block party celebration.If you are interested in volunteering alongside City Year and community members in Harlem on this powerful day of service, please contact Alli Szutu at azutu10@cityyear.org 
   
   
2. LICense to Serve Community Service Day: On Saturday May 14th, beginning at 9am, the City Year New York Corps will host the 5th annual LICense to Serve Community Service Day. This year, 150 volunteers will come together in Long Island City, Queens for a day of revitalizing and celebrating this community. The morning will include painting, landscaping and light construction projects at local schools and community organizations. In the afternoon, volunteers and community members will gather to celebrate the accomplishments of the day through a block party which will include community resources, food and lots of fun.For any questions please email LICensetoserve@gmail.com or call Vashti Valerius at 646.546.6486
   
   
3. Be Fit, BX: Saturday, April 30, 2011 City Year is proud to announce our upcoming health fair titled “Be Fit, BX!” We look forward to engaging the Hunts Point/Longwood community in an event about health, wellness, and nutrition. This year we are excited to be shifting from our traditional physical service as seen during “Bronx Building Bronx”, into a more comprehensive event that will allow South Bronx citizens to have access to resources and information regarding their health. We are not seeking volunteers, but rather (students/families/friends/ Alumni) to join us as attendees in a celebration and movement toward a healthier Bronx. The day will include sports competitions, health screenings, carnival activities, and a barbecue. The event will be held on Saturday, April 30th at our partner school P.S. 333/335 and will run from 12pm-4pm. Join the festivities and begin the process of building a healthier Bronx!We looking forward to seeing you there! If you have any questions please contact the Be Fit, BX Recruitment team at befitbxrecruitment@gmail.com
   
   
4. THIS WEEK IN REVIEW:  Remember when Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer visited the CYNY team at IS 204 in Long Island City, Queens? No? Well you can still check out our post on the visit by Clicking HERE
   
   
5. UPCOMING FUNDRAISING OPPORTUNITIES:
   Annual “Ripples  of Hope” Dinner – May 4th – Chelsea Piers
   Associate Board Fundraiser  -May 19th
   Alumni Board, Family & Friends Fundraiser – June 2nd  

The Giving Back Awards at Credit Suisse

On April 13, the Credit Suisse Americas Foundation hosted the sixth annual Giving Back Awards, an event that honors the thousands of Credit Suisse employees throughout the Americas who lend their time and talents to positively impact the communities in which we live in work.  The event was attended by nearly 500 employees at the New York office, and viewed by employees across the Americas via video-conference.

City Year New York made an appearance at these awards.  Check out some of the photos below:

© SYarker - Giving Back Awards 12Apr11-99

© SYarker - Giving Back Awards 12Apr11-99

© SYarker - Giving Back Awards 12Apr11-99

Corporate Partnerships Manager Keith Harwood with Chief Credit Officer - Credit Suisse & CYNY Board Member Sharon Meadows

© SYarker - Giving Back Awards 12Apr11-99