Bain & Company Joins PS 83 for Health and Wellness Fair

Today’s guest blogger is Zena Patel. Zena serves with City Year New York as the Team Leader for the Bain & Company team at PS 83 in East Harlem.

On Thursday, January 24^th we hosted our team sponsor, Bain & Company, for a Health and Wellness Fair for the 3^rd-5^th grade students in the City Year After School program. Bain & Company facilitated four booths focused on eating healthy, exercising and setting goals. Our students were able to learn some new yoga positions, practice jump roping, and check their heart rates!

This after school fair was an annual event with Bain & Company. Last year, the “Bainees,” facilitated a Culture Carnival, showcasing customs and foods from all around the world. Many of our students remembered the fair from last year and waited in anticipation for what this year would bring. One student, a fourth grader and seasoned City Year After School attendee, exclaimed that she loved every station because “[she] got to learn new things like checking [her] heart beat!” Another fourth grader agreed, adding that it was a lot of fun to jump rope with his friends and keep trying until they got it.

The students were also prompted to set healthy goals that the City Year Corps Members will be following up on. After learning about calories, categorizing healthy foods and learning about balanced meals, our students agreed to set goals for themselves. Some of the goals set were:

• “My goal is to stop eating pizza and start to eat more salad”
• “My goal is to eat less and eat more healthy food. I also want to eat homemade food like fish, chickpeas and spaghetti.”
• “I want to eat less chips and McDonald’s and eat more vegetables and healthier things.”
• “To eat all the vegetables that my mother serves me”
• “To drink about eight cups of water a day”
• “To eat more fruits, vegetables and whole foods and no more McDonald’s”

All in all, it was a fun and educational time for all! We look forward to more events with Bain & Company. A big City Year thank you to Bain & Company for a day of fun and sustainable healthy living!

Five Things Friday

1. Countdown to Graduation: Will you be there? Join us on Thursday, June 7th at Kaye Playhouse (68th Street and Lexington Avenue) to celebrate the service our 255 corps members have completed this year! Please RSVP to Sarah Shutt at sshutt11@cityyear.org.

2. Friends & Family Reception: To continue celebrating our corps, there will be a Family & Friends Reception following Graduation at Phoenix Park Restaurant (206 E. 67th Street) from 5-7 pm. If you’d like to attend, please RSVP to Sarah Shutt at sshutt11@cityyear.org.

3. Credit Suisse Service Day: Today our Civic Engagement team lead their last service day of the year (that is until the new corps starts in July) with a group of volunteers from Credit Suisse, one of our amazing partners and team sponsors. Volunteers kicked off the day at PS 197 in East Harlem and worked to beautify the school grounds. Thank you to all the volunteers, corps members, and staff for working so hard! And congratulations to our Civic Engagement team for a year of many successful service days!

4. Spring into Health Carnival: Today at PS/MS 57 in East Harlem, the school and City Year team hosted a carnival called “Spring Into Health” for the students and community. It was an amazing event for all! The proof is in the photo below…

East Harlem Zone Director, Scott Edwards, prepares to be dunked at the Spring into Health Fair at PS/MS 57

5. People Magazine: Check out pages 104-106 in the newest edition of People magazine on stands now for a Heroes Among Us feature that is highlighting City Year Los Angeles corps member Aaron Clark.

“Every day, students have to make critical choices: ‘Do I join a gang? Do I give in to alcohol or selling drugs?…For kids consumed with surviving rather than planning for the future, City Year has been a lifeline.” – Paul Hernandez, Principal of Markham Middle School

Queens People of the Week

The corps members and volunteers who attended YOUth for Queens earlier this month, were celebrated by NY1 over the weekend, as the “Queens Person of the Week.” More than 200 corps members, students, and community members joined us for various service projects and performances from local youth. Please watch the video above to learn more.

Click here to view pictures from day.

70 Volunteers Come Together in West Harlem

Today’s guest blogger is Andrew Wilber, a senior corps member currently serving as a Team Leader on our New York Civic Engagement team. 

On May 17, 2012, City Year partnered with Dimension Data, NTT America, and Blue Coat for an entire day of service at P.S./M.S. 161 in West Harlem. After a short Program where volunteers got ready for the day with some powerful PT and warm ups, over 70 volunteers worked hard to build, sand, and stain 6 flower boxes and 20 planter beds. Volunteers then filled them with soil, and planted wild flowers to completely transform the outdoor space at P.S./M.S. 161.

Volunteers lead students through painting projects

To make this service day even more powerful volunteers engaged over 45 students in painting projects, completing over 20 panel murals of inspiring leaders that the school will hang in their facility next week. With a half an hour left of service, the volunteers kicked it in high gear and built, sanded, and painted 8 bookcases for various schools throughout Harlem.

As the day drew to a close, we took some time to chat with volunteers about their experience. One volunteer stated, “I had a great time, and each year I come, it is always fulfilling.” Another volunteer simply remarked, “City Year Rocks!” That quote certainly reflects yet another 100% net promoter score for City Year New York’s Civic Engagement Team.

Thank you to all the volunteers for your hard work and to the P.S./M.S. 161 school & community for opening up your school for a day of service. Click here to check out pictures from the day.