| Stories of Change
Stories of change is the newsletter for Monroe Youth Challenge Program. Here you can
view our latest newsletter.
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Students Learn PeaceJam's 10 Issues Hands-On |
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MYCP Red Shirts Lead Global Youth
Service Day
In a whirlwind of three rotations
for more than 200 students at
Treasure Village Montessori, each
child from kindergarten through 8th
Grade participated in a hands-on
experience lead by high school
students around 10 issues of peace.
Each station - from post cards to
the president and purple paint on a
mural - met a need in the community
or addressed a global need.
The Global Youth Service Day, held
May 18, was a day of service
learning activities to teach younger
students about critical issues
outlined in the PeaceJam curriculum
and the Global Call to Action
project. Several of the event
leaders are m embers
of the county-wide MYCP Youth
PeaceJam Board.
Organizations that supported
the event include South Florida
Water Management District, GLEE,
Dept. of Greenways and Trails,
Sheriff's Office, Girl Scout Troop
1486, Monroe County Extension
Office, American Red Cross, and
Mosquito Control.
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Racism and Hate Addressed at GYSD
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MYCP STEP Team Dances, Speaks, and Teaches
 The
Marathon MYCP Step Team came to the Global Youth
Service Day to address racism and hate by doing
a step demo and high energy workshop. Alaina
Davis, a junior at Marathon High School, is a
PeaceJam board member who helped teach steps to
TVM students. She says, "The whole day was a
great experience. Being able to help teach kids
learn how to end racism and hate was wonderful
and I hope they remember everything we taught
them about peace." Another MHS student and
PeaceJam board member, Alexander Morato, helped
design the team's presentation.
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MYCP Youth Event Supports Food Pantry, Haiti
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Soup-A-Bowl Key West Airs on NBC
 NBC
News Affiliate Staff called for footage of the
Key West Soup-A-Bowl held May 26. Key West High
School Junior Terry Beeman was able to capture
the event and upload video that aired on the 11
o'clock news that night. Beeman is in the film
class at KWHS.
The event raised almost $600 to stock the food
pantry at St. Mary's Star of the Sea Church in
Key West and support Haiti Relief. Other than
the direct benefit, it also engaged students
other than MYCP "red shirts" in PeaceJam's
global act of change to address hunger. Art
students at KWHS made the bowls that were part
of the evening's fundraising.
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Students Climb Rock Wall, Overcome Negative Choices
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National Guard Shares Drug-Prevention
Program County-wide
In three separate teams over five days, The
Florida National Guard presented a physical and
intellectual presentation to help youth chose
drug and alcohol-free lives. This year's program
was a roll-out of a new curriculum that included
the rock-climbing wall. Monroe County was
selected as the site for the launch of the new
program because of its ease of facilitation with
the aid of MYCP organization and leadership.
Almost 2,000 middle school students enrolled at
Marathon Middle School, Plantation Key School,
Horace O'Bryant Middle School, Treasure Village
Montessori, Key Largo School, Sugarloaf, Big
Pine Charter, and Key West Montessori Charter
were able to enjoy the interactive day with
several uniformed national Guardsmen.
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Big Story of Change
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MYCP Seeks New Director
From the first day on campus at Marathon
High School as the assistant principal
in 2000, Sunny Booker became a volunteer
for the movement that would later become
the Monroe Youth Challenge Program (MYCP).
For the last five years, while Booker
has simultaneously been working as the
school district's Safe and Healthy
Schools Coordinator, she has served as
the volunteer director of MYCP. With her
goal met of sustaining the program, she
now plans to resign as its volunteer
director. MYCP seeks new leadership.
"MYCP is poised to advance its many
youth-serving programs to the next
level. Significant foundational work
has been accomplished under Ms. Booker's
leadership in recent years. The school
district benefited from this work,"
said, Dr. Joseph Burke, the
Superintendent of Schools and Board
Member of the Monroe County Education
Foundation (MCEF).
In 10 years Monroe Y  outh
Challenge Program has grown from a
grass-roots parent-driven program at
Marathon High School that brought in a
one-day event, Challenge Day. Now it is
county-wide and serves more than 8,000
youth and adults annually over all 12
months. A majority of the activities
planned are created by youth.
"Doing this work has been one of the
highlights of my life. I hope to
support the new director as an adult
volunteer working with the students,"
Booker said.
A committee of dedicated volunteers and
MYCP team members plan to select the
next leader. Anyone interested in the
position as MYCP Director, may contact
MCEF Board Member Katrina Wiatt at (305)
743-3684.
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Be The Change Sponsor Spotlight:
Keys Kids Dental
Dr. Denise Vedrenne in Marathon
came to the rescue for a three-year-old
who has attended MYCP's Hispanic
playgroup in Key Largo for two years.
The child's needs were discovered in a
first-ever screening provided by the
playgroup. Even though the family was in
dire need, their situation fell between
the cracks of any program services. By
performing almost $500 in dental work
gratis, Dr. Vedrenne saved this young
child from years of pain.
Keys Kids Dental is located at 9713
Overseas Highway in Marathon. Contact
Dr. Vedrenne at (305) 743-4670 or
Keyskidsdental@gmail.com
Dr. Vedrenne,
thank you for Being the
Change!
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