Over 150 community service leaders, non-profit organizations, and local governmental leaders attended the Foundations Community Partnership (www.fcpartnership.org) “Partnership in Youth Services” luncheon ceremony held at the Doylestown Country Club in Doylestown yesterday. The event honored 12 non-profit community programs in Bucks County that are making a difference in the lives of local children with monetary grants of $3,000 each.
The keynote speaker was Comcast Sportsnet Anchor Michael Barkann. Fans have seen him on-air in Boston, at KYW-TV in Philadelphia, as well as on the USA Network, NJN and CBS Sports prior to Comcast SportsNet. Michael has been named Pennsylvania’s Sportscaster of the Year seven times, as well as won numerous Emmy Awards for his outstanding achievements. In May 2010, Michael was inducted into the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Foundations executive director Ron Bernstein, keynote speaker Michael Barkann, Dr. Richard Coe of Kids Voting, and Dr. Christina Carson-Sacco of The Center for Neuropsychology and Counseling presented plaques and checks to the 12 local non-profit organizations. Among the community programs receiving grants were:
Bristol Township Educational Advancement Fund in Levittown will use the grant to support their “Healthy Decisions for Healthy Living” curriculum for high school students. This program gives at-risk students who are faced with serious decisions such as drugs and sex in high school a better understanding of human development, relationships, personal skills, sexual behavior, sexual health, society and culture.
Millcreek Elementary School in Warrington will use the grant to support bullying education, help students develop personal coping strategies and encourage them to communicate with confidence through the “Stamp-Out Bullying Assembly Project”.
Neshaminy School District in Langhorne will use the grant for their Summer P.A.S.S at-risk youth program, a professionally supervised summer program specifically designed for middle school students who are at high risk for behavioral health problems to help them develop and improve social skills.
With the help of this grant, Peace Valley Holistic Center in Chalfont will educate special needs children, siblings and parents in coping skills, stress management, audio therapy, color therapy and natural food diets. This project strives to make life at home and school more productive, meaningful and less stressful, and provide a better quality of life for the whole family.
Christ’s Home in Warminster will use the grant to build a low ropes adventure course that will help children develop leadership and cooperation skills as well as promoting team and family unity. The course will also build children’s confidence and self esteem and forge positive relationships with their biological siblings and their foster siblings.
The Peace Center in Langhorne will use the grant to implement their “Diversity Task Force” at Lenape Middle School in Doylestown. The Diversity Task Force manages incidences of intolerance and insensitivity and helps students to learn to express their concerns and come up with solutions.
Camp Cranium in Milton, PA will use the grant to support one week camp scholarships for Bucks County children suffering from brain injuries. Camp Cranium is a non-profit summer camp in Milton dedicated to providing a one-of-a-kind experience for children with head injuries, giving them the opportunity to meet other children with brain injuries, form lasting friendships and develop self confidence.
Center for Student Learning Charter School in Levittown will use the grant to implement restorative practices to better develop classroom management, produce a better understanding of relationships and reduce oppositional behavior.
Bucks County Housing Group in Wrightstown will use the grant for their new youth counselor program, in Morrisville which partners community teenagers with school aged children living in a homeless shelter in a supervised setting.
justCommunity’s Upper Bucks Social Norms Project to Prevent Underage Drinking in Quakertown will use the grant to implement the AlcoholEdu curriculum in the 9th grade in several Upper Bucks School Districts, including Pennridge, Palisades and Quakertown. AlcoholEdu is a national program that supports student decision-making, helps them resist use of alcohol, and better manage mixed messages about alcohol consumption from peers and the media.
Bucks County Audubon Society in New Hope will use the grant to increase the participation of students suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder in their school-age education programs at Honey Hollow Environmental Education Center. In the school-age education program, the ASD student will develop skills in the areas of academics, sensory problems and socialization.
The grant will support Central Bucks YMCA’s special needs Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts Troops in Doylestown, which serve individuals with mental health/mental retardation and teaches them about citizenship, community awareness, teamwork and physical fitness.
The Morris M. Davis Award, an award given annually to a student intern whose contributions to the community are judged to be an outstanding example was presented to Feasterville resident Melissa Arnold, who worked with the American Red Cross Homeless Shelter in Levittown through Foundations Community Partnership’s Summer Youth Corps.
“Foundations is proud to offer grants for the twelfth year through the Partnership in Youth Services program,” said Bernstein. “We also sponsor the Foundations Partnership in Education program, which recognizes the achievements of local high school seniors for their demonstrated community service, commitment to academic performance, and quality of character and the Summer Youth Corps, which offer interns the ability to gain practical experience while helping to effect positive change in the community.”
Sponsors of the program included: Theodora B. Betz Foundation, Bishop & Associates, Inc.; Davis Trachtenberg, Inc.; The Carl Koenig Family; Merrill Lynch Doylestown Office; Universal Health Services; Wachovia A Wells Fargo Company; AXA Foundation; The Bernstein Family; William E. Boger, CPA; First Niagara Bank; First Savings Banking- Insurance- Investments; Magellan Health Services; Charles H. Rose, CLU, CHFC; Tilley Fire Equipment Co. Inc.; Advanced Furniture Services Group; Antheil Maslow & MacMinn, LLP; Bucks County Community College Foundation; Bucks County Herald; Richard S. Kempes, Esquire; Limor Goodman, PC; Northampton Country Club; Ronald J. Smolow, Attorney At Law; Thompson Networks; Dr. Joseph Stella & Family; Advanced Micro Computer Specialists, Inc.; Astro Dynamics Print & Graphic Services; Bi-County Fuels, Inc.; Brody Public Relations; Bucks County Bank; Bucks County Glass; David Velasco Salon; The DiNatale Family; Doylestown Wealth Management, Inc.; The Friedman Family; Gilmore & Associates; In The Bag Catering; Mert & Monte’s; J. Carroll Molloy Realtor; The Weldon Family; The Zagerman Family; and Zateeny Loftus, LLP.
