75th
By Scott Talley SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
A 2010 graduate of Renais-
sance High School, Joshua Storks-Sayles, has his mind set on being a difference maker in his community. And when he obtains his future goals, Storks-Sayles says a huge debt of thanks will be owed to the Coleman A. Young Foundation (CAYF).
“I am very proud to be a part
of the Coleman A. Young Foun- dation family and program be- cause it focuses on the youth in the city of Detroit by help- ing them learn skills that they will need as they mature into adults,” said Storks-Sayles, who began studies this fall as a Sidney A. Ribeau President’s Leadership Academy Scholar at Bowling Green State Univer- sity.
“CAYF has made a power-
ful difference in my life, and continues to make a positive difference in the lives of other young adults in the communi- ty today by offering opportuni- ties that our youth would not have access to otherwise.”
Since 1982, CAYF, a non-
profit organization, has de- voted its resources and energy to producing leaders among Detroit’s youth. Founded by Coleman Alexander Young, Detroit’s longest serving mayor, CAYF promotes lead- ership through scholarships, mentoring and other support, including the REAL Skills pro- gram, a series of free Saturday workshops focused on drop- out prevention.
Storks-Sayles is a past stu-
dent leader in the program, which targets sixth-ninth grade students and parents. REAL Skills helps to prepare students for life by addressing a host of critical topics includ- ing test-taking skills, conflict resolution, financial respon- sibility, sexual responsibil- ity/relationships, community service, and etiquette
The Fall 2010 REAL Skills
Program is under way through Dec. 11, with Saturday work- shops (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) taking place at two Detroit locations: east side, Osborn Community, Law Academy, 19411 Cliff, and west side, Brightmoor commu-
THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
Nonprofit Spotlight: Coleman A. Young Foundation
Developing Detroit youth leadership is mission
the business of serving youth select students who are already positioned for success, CAYF seeks students with potential and a demonstrated desire to achieve in spite of obstacles. For example, CAYF’s schol- arship program has awarded more than $4 million to more than 400 deserving students with these qualities, including many first-generation college students. An astounding 90 percent of these students have graduated.
While government stud-
A FUTURE COMMUNITY leader, Renaissance High graduate Joshua Storks- Sayles, a freshman at Bowl- ing Green State University, gives thanks to the Coleman A. Young Foundation.
nity, Redford Branch Library, 21200 Grand River. Along with the activities at the two sites, which include a free catered lunch, students participate in educational and recreational field trips.
“If we can provide services
that help, that’s all that mat- ters,” said Barry Hubbard, REAL Skills manager. “We have an outstanding group of volunteers who bring a high level of professional and life experiences that the students benefit from immensely.
“But the other key to our
success is the involvement of our students. From the begin- ning of the program to the end, the students run the program; they facilitate the day’s ac- tivities. We believe this really sets us apart from other youth programs. We have fun while we learn.”
Space is still available in
the REAL Skills’ fall program and applications can be found at
www.cayf.org/rsp-apply. php. Prospective parents and students also are invited to visit one of the workshop lo- cations during Saturday pro- gram hours.
The REAL Skills program
is one of many ways CAYF makes a difference in Detroit. While many organizations in
ies indicate that a quarter of American adults are function- ally illiterate, an enormous disadvantage in an economy that is increasingly knowl- edge-based, CAYF is part of the solution by offering inno- vative, nationally recognized programs that pave the way to future success. All CAYF programs are made possible through the generous support of donors representing all seg- ments of the community.
“It’s extraordinary that our
community sees the value of investing in education,” said Dr. Claudette Smith, CAYF ex- ecutive director. “We are most grateful to our community for investing in our students, and that support is needed now more than ever as we address today’s challenges. Educat- ing our children remains the key.”
Hope for the future is what
Storks-Sayles represents. As a President’s Leadership Academy Scholar, he is ex- pected to make meaningful contributions to society upon graduation, while demonstrat- ing the program’s core values of integrity, service, credibility and learning.
“CAYF’s support and en-
couragement catapulted me to graduate high school, obtain a four-year scholarship and be the best person that I can be,” said Storks-Sayles, a criminal justice major. “They instilled in me the will to move ahead and push through obstacles and challenges, and for that, I will be eternally grateful.”
To make a contribution or
learn more about the Coleman A. Young Foundation, please visit
www.cayf.org or call (313) 962-2200.
by Dwain Love We who would like to re-
store the communities or neighborhoods to the kind we remember, must define the role of “neighbor” and de- termine if we are ready to be activists and advocates for the neighborhoods we represent and occupy.
Neighbor, according to Web-
ster’s dictionary, is as follows: -noun. 1. a person who lives near another. 2. a person who shows kindliness or helpful- ness toward his or her fellow humans: to be a neighbor to someone in distress. -verb (used without object) 3. to live or be situated near to; adjourn; border on. 4. to associate with or as if with one’s neighbors; be neighborly or friendly (often folloed by with).
This seems simple enough,
but there are many who live around us who do not under- stand the meaning of “neigh- bor.” At present, we are chal- lenged to be and to cultivate good neighbors. We will likely need to become activists to ac- complish this purpose.
The word “activism” is used
synonymously with protest or dissent, but activism can stem from any number of political orientations and take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or poli- ticians, political campaigning, economic activism, such as boycotts or preferentially pa- tronizing businesses, rallies, street marches, strikes, both work stoppages and hunger strikes, or even guerrilla tac- tics.
In some cases, activism has
nothing to do with protest or confrontation. Some religious or vegetarian/vegan activ- ists try to persuade people to change their behavior directly rather than persuade govern- ments to change laws. The co- operative movement seeks to build new institutions which conform to cooperative prin- ciples, and generally does not lobby or protest politically. The question each resident is faced with is: are you a neigh- bor or do you just live here? There is a significant differ- ence.
Those of us who chose
to fight to keep the city from blight and further decline and hopefully move it into a phase of restoration must be reso- lute. It will be a fight to the death, and the city and our
way of life as citizens will be the victims if we lose. The stakes are very high. We have property values, quality of life, crime and tax burdens impact- ed by our success or the lack of it.
One of the ways to accom-
plish our goal of neighborhood restoration and respect is to “walk the talk.” People live by example. In fact, most of the behavior we exhibit as humans, good or bad, is learned. We must serve as examples of good citizens and set the stan- dards. There are those who occupy the city who have not learned or enjoyed what those who lament the loss are talk- ing about. Those things that matter: clean streets, peace- ful surroundings, neat lawns, human accountability have to be fiercely maintained and ex- plained to others.
It will mean doing things at
times that we feel ought to be done by our city services and facilities, such as sweeping our curbs, streets and clearing the openings on our sewers. There are instances where good neighbors mow the lawns of vacant properties and even water them. Why would we do that, you may ask? We have to maintain a standard of living that we can be com- fortable with at all costs.
If we
give up on our standards, we will continue to lose good citi- zens and our tax base for the city will continue to erode.
We have to develop a code of ethics or conduct for neigh-
bors, and we have to post it externally and live up to it in- ternally.
You have to make a choice.
This problem will not fix itself.
We must ask, what was the
attraction that caused us to choose to live in the neigh- borhood in the first place? For most of us it was clean streets, well-kept properties and peaceful neighborhoods that were relatively crime free.
There are ordinances on
the books, both municipal and state, that prohibit littering and illegal parking and dump- ing, etc. Most of us carry cell phones with cameras in them. We need to develop a liaison with city governmental agen- cies to report and insist on prosecution or enforcement of the regulations already on the books. We need to persuade our City Council to pass or- dinances needed if they don’t already exist.
The neighborhood organi-
zations and block clubs need to keep each other aware of the progress or lack thereof, that each is experiencing and offer solutions to each other that are effective.
Those of us who are un-
happy with the way things are, have three choices: give up and move away; give up and see the city sink further into squalor and decay; or work patiently and diligently to solve the nu- merous problems that trouble our beloved city.
Congratulates
For 75 years The Michigan Chronicle has been the voice in our community. As we celebrate our 20 years of service, Strategic Staffing Solutions would like to thank you, Sam and The Michigan Chronicle, for your dedication to Detroit.
Sam Logan The Michigan Chronicle on 75 years
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October 13-19, 2010
Page C-3 Restoring Detroit’s neighborhoods
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