SYC Newsletter - City of Sacramento

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SYC Newsletter
CITY OF SACRAMENTO—YOUTH COMMISSION
What’s New with the Commission?
Mallory Shingle, Chair, D3
Why Serve Anyway?
Yes, all of our posters tell you to join us
for community service hours. But why
serve our community
in the first place?
After all, you are a
part of it, so shouldn’t people be serving
you too? Service is
not a one-way street.
Besides being one of
the keys to community progress, community service fosters personal growth.
By doing your part
you are in turn serv-
ing yourself as well.
You are contributing
to the Sacramento
Youth Commission
by applying for the
commission, attending meetings and following our activities
on social media. The
privileges we have
today would have
never been accomplished if people had
not found the will to
serve one another. So
step
it up, Sacramento, and
show your love
for the awesome city we
live in by joining us the first
and third Monday of each
month.
Commissioners Jang-Chin, Lindo and Anuszczyk cleaning up after the Celebrate Natomas community event.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Octoberfest
Come to Our Meetings!
Social Media
2
Come to Our meetings
Celebrate Natomas
MLK─March with Us!
3
2015─A Year to Serve!
4
Veterans Day
Stop the Bullying!
On Appreciation
5
What’s on Your Mind?
Creekside Community
Fair
6
Dedicated to His Community
Neighbors Breakfast
7
A Voice for Youth
Join Our Audience
8
Community Speaker Series
Why Become a Youth
Commissioner?
9
Friday Night Hot Spots
10
Youth Job Fair
Need Community Service
Hours?
11
Meet the Staff
12
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Simon Anuszczyk: Octoberfest
The Octoberfest was a
fun event consisting of
about 10 booths offering everything from
free hot dogs to face
painting to mosquito
control information, as
well as live music. We
Youth Commissioners
helped set up and run
our booth and the
hacky-sack-toss stand.
I helped work the district two (my district)
information table
where we signed people up for our district
newsletter and fielded
complaints and issues.
We also visited the
firefighter’s truck, trying out their fire hose
and taking a district
two personnel photo
with staff members. I
had the pleasure of
meeting and speaking
with my councilmember, Mr. Allen Warren,
for the first time. After
the event ended, we all
helped clean up tables,
chairs, and canopies.
As one of my first city
events, I loved meeting
local community members and City staff
members. I really enjoyed working the Octoberfest not only because I was able to represent the Youth Commission in my own district, but also because I
enjoyed the music and
entertainment; it was a
wonderful event.
Lyrik Hickman: Come to Our Meetings!
I am encouraging Sacramento City residents
of all ages to come and
support your Youth
Commission. Come see
what we have accom-
plished, inform us of
your concerns, and be a
part of our meetings
because we represent
you! Our meetings are
typically on the first
and third Monday of
every month. We hope
to see you soon!
Mackenzie Starnes: Social Media
Social media has become a huge influence
on modern society. Integrating social media
into the Sacramento
Youth Commission has
brought and will continue to bring more
awareness of our proSYC
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gram to the Sacramento area. As the Public
Relations Officer, it is
my job to keep our social media pages up-todate and informative,.
This includes links to
current events that are
relevant to the youth in
our area. Make sure to
follow us on Twitter
(@SacYouthCom) and
Facebook to stay informed!
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Camilla Covington: Celebrate Natomas Event
Celebrate Natomas is an
annual community festival
in which over 150 booths
are hosted by civic groups,
businesses and neighbor-
hoods, that are located in
both Sacramento City and
the Sacramento County.
The Sacramento Youth
Commission participated
in this casual but
fun event. One of our
goals was to reach
out to members of
the community and
recruit more
Youth Commissioners.
We all agreed
the event was
a massive
success!
From left to right: Commissioners Serrano, Shingle, Hardy, Hickman and Lindo
Henzi Kou & Donovan Serrano: MLK– March With Us!
Come join us in
the Annual
Martin Luther
King Jr. Day
March on Monday January 19!
We will be
marching along
with other enthusiastic Sacramento citizens. Additionally, at the
end of the march, we will
have a booth with free coffee, water and hot chocolate. The march will start
at Sacramento City College and conclude at the
Sacramento Convention
Center. The Youth Commission would like to let
everyone know that we
support this wonderful
event and are excited to
take part in it. Everyone is
welcome to join and see
the
march.
We
hope
to see
you
there!
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Alisha Ahmed: 2015─A Year to Serve
The past twelve months
have been full of highs
and lows all around the
world. From the release
of the iPhone 6 to #Black
LivesMatter and everything in between; 2014
has left its mark in history. We have reached a
new year; a new beginning to start fresh. As
Oprah Winfrey said,
"Cheers to a new year
and another chance for
us to get it right." Let's
take all the good we can
from last year and move
forward with positive
mindsets!
As you make your list
of New Year’s resolutions, try to make it
your priority to become
involved in your community. Giving your
time to the community
makes a huge difference─you can connect
with others with similar passions and goals.
There are several commissions, boards and
organizations that you
can donate your time to;
one of them being the
Sacramento Youth Commission! Voice your
opinions and thoughts
about the youth in Sacramento at our meetings at
City Hall every other Monday at 6:00 PM.
Make 2015 a year dedicated to youth advocacy
and the future of your
community!
Danielle Lindo: Veterans Day Event
Veterans Day is an important day to not only
acknowledge the sacrifice
of our military heroes, but
also to express our appreciation for their service.
On Tuesday, November
11, 2014, the Youth Commission proudly marched
in the City
of Sacramento's
Fourth Annual Veterans Day Parade. The
event, which
honored all
of the men and women
who have fought to preserve our freedom, took
place in Downtown Sacramento along Capitol Mall.
Several food trucks,
marching bands, and community groups had the opportunity to participate in
the parade and festival. It
was stunning to see the
massive and enthusiastic
crowds that had gathered
with our veterans to celebrate this very important
day. As a Commissioner, I
am proud to have taken
part in such a meaningful
event.
Commissioners marching at the Veterans Day Parade
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Olivia Sison: Stop the Bullying!
Bullying continues to be a
big problem in
schools. This past December, a 12-year-old boy in
nearby Folsom took his
own life as a result of bullying. I am sure that almost all school children
can either personally identify with being bullied or
know someone who has
been bullied. Being part of
the Sacramento Youth
Commission, I hope that I
am able to help put a stop
to bullying in
schools. This year, the
Youth Commission and I
will be going forward with
an Anti-bullying Cam-
paign. Look for our
future efforts as we
work to educate students of the harms
of bullying in an
attempt to stop it.
Alexandra Jang-Chin: On Appreciation
With the Holiday season
coming to end and the beginning of a new year I
would like to talk about
appreciation. Growing up,
we have been told to say
thank you, but a lot of us
do not understand exactly
why until we are much
older. We just know that
when your grandma buys
you that really cool toy
you say, “thank you.” Recently, I attended a Youth
Leadership Camp called
RYLA, where we were
told several stories that
demonstrated qualities of
leaders, but the one that
stood out for me was about
a high school student.
A history teacher wanted
to see what her students
knew about the medieval
period. She asked her students to think about and
discuss what their lives
would be like during the
medieval period. As she
walked around listening to
the students most of them
said things like, "If I lived
back then I wouldn't have
to clean my room and
wash the dishes," or "I
wouldn't have to go to
school and do homework
every day." One student,
however, sat quietly with
his arms folded. The
teacher approached him
and asked if he was okay.
He responded in an angry
tone, "I'm fine!" She
backed off, but told him to
see her after class.
The bell rang and class
ended; the student approached the teacher and
said, "I'm sorry about earlier, I just get so mad when
I hear people complaining
about things like cleaning
their room and their parents yelling at them to
wash the dishes because at
least they have a room to
clean─ at least they
have a home to go
to." The teacher later found out that the
student was homeless.
I enjoyed this story
because it really
shows us that we
shouldn't complain
about "having" to go
to school or work. A lot of people don't have a
school or job to go to. Next time your mom
tells you to wash dishes or your teacher assigns
an essay you should think that it is not something you "have" to do, but it is something you
"get" to do.
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Yvette Ramirez: What’s on Your Mind?
The Sacramento Youth
Commission meetings
are held bi-weekly and
are a unique way to
become informed of
upcoming community
events in Sacramento.
The meetings allow
audience members to
become further engaged by addressing
any comments or concerns one may have,
especially in relation to
youth involvement.
Moreover, community
service hours are always offered to those
who attend the meetings. All are encouraged to come to Historic City Hall and spend
an evening learning
more about the City of
Sacramento.
Myles Miller: Creekside Community Fair
The Creekside Community Fair provided
commissioners an opportunity to engage the
youth of Sacramento.
During our time at the
fair, we informed people of our role as commissioners and encouraged young people to
come and support us at
our meetings, and to
apply to become a
youth commissioner
themselves next year.
Each commissioner
that volunteered at this
event enjoyed being a
part of the rather
unique atmosphere
comprised of diverse
youn g people. We will
continue to enhance the
quality and equality of
Sacramento by advising the city council on
youth related issues.
Oluchi Okwu: My 2015 Goals
Happy New Year to
everyone! I hope everybody is looking forward to what 2015 has
to offer. This year is
going to be filled with
transitions and changes
for me. I will be ending
one journey as a graduate from high school
and embark on a new
journey as I enter colSYC
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lege. My goals for the
remainder of my senior
year are to end high
school on a strong note
with high grades and
get accepted into my
top colleges. Additionally, I hope to continue
playing an active role
in my community
through my involvement in the Youth
Commission and other
extracurricular activities. With less than six
months left in my senior year, I aim to leave
an imprint on West
Campus High School
and make the most of
my high school experience.
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Francis Willy: Dedicated to His Community
Serving on the Sacramento
Youth Commission is just
one way I volunteer in the
community. Recently, I
volunteered at an event
called Christmas in Cordova. At this event, I was a
photographer who took
pictures of the local kids
with Santa Claus and the
other festivities. This com-
ing January I will be taking part in a river clean up
with the Interact Club of
West Campus High
School. Also, this coming
February the Sacramento
Central Youth and Government Delegation and I
will take part in a mock
legislative meeting at the
Capital. Serving my com-
munity goes beyond
my extracurricular
activities; in fact,
being an active
member of the community is who I am.
Davon Thomas: Neighbors Breakfast
I represent District 5 and
Councilmember Jay
Schenirer for the Sacramento Youth Commission.
I was able to attend the
Neighbors Breakfast on
October 25. Over a delicious breakfast, the audience was enlightened by
key note speakers: our
City Manager, John
Shirey; Professor Mark
Brown of Sacramento
State and
NSD Division Manager,
Vincene Jones. Their
speeches recognized the
Cities involvement in the
community as well as
acknowledged the goals
and the direction of the
city.
After breakfast we attended different workshops. I
attended the Media and
Communication workshop
which was taught by Scott
Rose, an authority in me-
The Media and Communication workshop with Scott Rose.
dia relations. Mr.
Rose talked about
how effective organizations communicate
using websites and
social media. Mr.
Rose said that you
should know your
demographic because
your method of outreach varies for each demographic. His main
method for effective communication is the 3
F's. The first is Function, which is that all
things in your goal of communication have to
have a role or purpose. The second was Frequency, which means keeping your audience
updated. The third was Fun, which means to
put joy into your work. In the end, the Neighbors Breakfast was a good source that taught
me and other Youth Commissioners communication skills.
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Aidan Willet: A Voice for the Youth
The Sacramento Youth
Commission is a great
reminder of the vast
possibilities of Sacramento’s youth. As a
representative for
Mayor Johnson, I gladly help the Youth
Commission be the
voice that the youth
needs throughout the
city. With our current
project, an antibullying campaign, we
focus on the growing
problem within schools
and our peers and are
attacking this problem
at its core. By giving
attention to these issues, we are giving a
voice to victims of bullying. Throughout my
time in the Sacramento
Youth Commission, I
have realized that small
steps are the greatest
steps. Through these
small steps, we can
achieve a bigger and
powerful voice
throughout the city and
nation.
Mariana Hardy: Join Our Audience!
We really want a bigger audience to attend
our Sacramento Youth
Commission meetings.
In our meetings we discuss ways to fundraise,
to get involved, and we
even get to know each
other better. Having an
audience would be
great not only for us,
but also for you, the
people watching. As
the audience you will
have a chance to get to
know us, the people
representing
you in
your
districts.
We beSYC
NEWSLETTER
lieve that if you see us,
young people your own
age, being active and
making a difference in
the community you
will want to get involved yourself. Another reason to attend
our meetings is to provide input or discuss an
issue that is important
to you because the
public is free to speak
up. Finally, if you are
in need of community
service hours, you can
get them just by being a
member of the audience.
Anyone can make a
change and positively
affect their community;
and you can start by sitting front row seat in the
audience at a Sacramento Youth Commission
meeting.
Commissioners discussing during a meeting this past Fall.
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Matthew Signorotti: Community Speaker Series
Last year in the fall, the
Commission attended Sacramento's Community
Speaker Series. During the
Speaker Series, several
incredible people who regularly speak around the
world, including Andre
Norman and the Feurtado
Brothers, shared their
life’s stories. The events
are especially fascinating
because the speakers come
from a variety of backgrounds. The event was
hosted by the Neighbor-
hood Services Division of
the Department of Parks
and Recreation at the
George Sim Community
Center.
I attended Andre Norman's
"There Is a Way Out" seminar. It focused on Mr.
Norman's experience as a
convict and the nature of
gang activity and peer
pressure. Mr. Norman
spoke about how he got
"stuck" in the American
prison system. The talk
highlighted the influence of family
and community life.
As a commissioner,
I readily plan to apply his insight to our
community.
Shivani Prasad: Why Become a Youth Commissioner?
The Sacramento Youth
Commission greatly impacts the lives of the commissioners by allowing
them to connect with their
community in profound
ways and mature as individuals. The Youth Commission teaches commissioners how to be professional when working with
others. Commissioners are
granted opportunities to
connect and network with
their city councilmembers. Additionally, students
gain a greater understanding of the Sacramento region and its inhabitants
through community service. The community service events allow commissioners to develop gratitude
and empathy for those
around them. These
essential skills allow
youth commissioners
to exit the commission as changed individuals, with a more
in depth understanding of their community.
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NEWSLETTER
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City of Sacramento—Youth Commission
Youth Making a Difference
Sacramento Youth Commission Mission
Sacramento Youth Commission’s Mission is to protect, preserve
and enhance the quality of life for the Sacramento Youth by
advising the City Council and the public on issues relating to
youth policies, programs, and opportunities.
Brandon James
Youth Commission
Coordinator
Parks and Recreation
Department
Neighborhood Services
Meet the Staff
916-808-6526
916-808-5959 Fax
City Hall
915 I Street, 3rd Floor
Brandon James
Youth Commission
Youth Coordinator
Vincene Jones
Neighborhood Services
Division Manager
Sylvia Fort
Parks and Recreation
Division Manager
Sacramento, CA 95814
bjames@cityofsacramento.org
www.cityofsacramento.org
Would you like to be a part of the Sacramento Youth Commission?
Here’s how:
1. Go to:
http://portal.cityofsacramento.org/ParksandRec/
Neighborhood-Services/Sacramento-YouthCommission
2. Fill out an application and fax it back to us!
3. Or contact Brandon James for more information
at bjames@cityofsacramento.org