ASB: Patricipant Sites
RURAL POVERTY
Cranks Creek Survival Center (Cranks, KY)
Started in 1983 to help the local community recover from flooding caused by irresponsible coal mining, this grass-roots organization maintains an emergency supply storage and serves to improve and provide housing and other services to lower income families.
http://www.americanprofile.com/issues/20001105/20001105se_238.asp
Appalachian South Folklife Center (Pipestem, VA)
The Appalachian South Folklife Center is a progressive, nonprofit, educational organization dedicated to a mountain heritage of freedom and self-reliance. It is a peaceful place where all people regardless of race, faith, or origin can come together for community service and creativity. Programs at the center include a “Learning Day Camp” for children ages 6-12, which offers enriching educational opportunities mixed together with creativity building exercises and fun. Among participating in such programs, volunteer groups can help us provide much needed home repairs to those in need as well as environmental endeavors.
http://www.folklifecenter.org/
H.O.M.E. Inc. (Orland, ME)
H.O.M.E. (Homeowners Organized for More Employment) Inc. is a multi-state cooperative community organization dedicated to economic and social reconstruction. The site we visit was founded in 1970 as an outlet for home workers crafts and has expanded to include a free health clinic, soup kitchen, food bank, and homeless shelters; a learning center with day-care, literacy and GED tutoring, and alternative high school programs; job and craft training, pottery, leather, and weaving shops; recovery barn, greenhouse, and farmers’ market; sawmill and shingle mill.
URBAN POVERTY
The Samaritan House/Café 458 (Atlanta, GA)
Founded in 1986, Samaritan House of Atlanta transforms lives by helping homeless men and women gain self-sufficiency through personalized employment readiness and life stabilization programs. They fulfill their mission through three core programs: Café 458, the Samaritan House Employment Readiness Program, and the Samaritan House Clean Street Team.
Sherwood & Neil Middle Schools (Chicago, IL)
Both schools are a part of the Chicago Public School system, enrolling roughly 400 students at each, many of whom come from low-income backgrounds. As of 2007, the students are falling below the average test scores for all CPS schools, though the scores improved over the years. Both schools strive to develop new initiatives and programs to help their students excel both inside and outside the classroom.
http://www.sherwood.cps.k12.il.us/
http://www.neil.cps.k12.il.us/
SOME- So Others Might Eat (Washington, DC)
SOME is an interfaith, community-based organization that exists to help the poor and homeless of our nation's capital. They meet the immediate daily needs of the people they serve with food, clothing, and health care. They help break the cycle of homelessness by offering services, such as affordable housing, job training, addiction treatment, and counseling, to the poor, the elderly and individuals with mental illness. Each day, SOME is restoring hope and dignity one person at a time.
YouthVille (Detroit, MI)
Detroit Youth Foundation supports a wide variety of programs for youth, including YouthVille Detroit, which promotes a holistic and integrated approach to developing youth by enhancing emotional, social, physical, mental and academic well-being through providing direct programs and research in partnership with others. YouthVille is dedicated to enhancing the lives of youth and furthering positive youth development in Detroit and surrounding communities.
http://www.youthvilledetroit.org/
Onsite Relief (New Orleans, LA)
The mission of Onsite Relief is to aid families who have been devastated by natural disasters in the recovery and rebuilding process. We pride ourselves on being organized and efficient to maximize the time and effort put forth by our volunteers. Our goal is to provide not only a fulfilling volunteer experience, but an exposure to the culture and allure of the cities we aid resulting in a deepened appreciation for these areas.
LGBT
Triangle Foundation (Detroit, MI)
Triangle Foundation is Michigan’s leading organization serving the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender (GLBT) and allied communities. They have become the dominant force for advocacy and change regarding GLBT issues in Michigan public policy, religion, business, education, and bias-crime victim assistance.
http://www.tri.org/
HEALTH & AGING
Care Assurance System for the Aging & Homebound (C.A.S.A.) of Madison County (Huntsville, AL)
CASA is a non-profit agency located in Huntsville, Alabama that provides services to individuals age 60 and older and to the homebound (wheelchair and bed bound) of all ages. Their programs are designed to enable the elderly and homebound to maintain their independence, dignity, health and safety by providing services that specifically address their special physical and emotional needs.
Githens Center (Mt. Holly, NJ)
Githens Center (Burlington County Cerebral Palsy Association) was established in 1951 under the leadership of Helen Githens, a parent from Vincentown, and Dr. E. Vernon Davis, an orthopedist. The group was originally organized to improve the welfare of individuals with cerebral palsy. In May 1951, the first Diagnostic Clinic was held with six individuals being screened. In September 1951, physical therapy was offered one half day per week. Through the untiring efforts of the founders, and many others including Virginia Alwine and Kate G. York, the current executive director, Githens Center has developed into its present status of excellence offering numerous programs for individuals with disabilities and their families.
HSSP: Peaceable Kingdom (Temple, TX)
Peaceable Kingdom Retreat for Children, Inc. is a place where children with special needs and chronic illnesses can celebrate the health-giving benefits of nature. Peaceable Kingdom strives to promote the educational, recreational, and therapeutic benefits of nature through our programs. Peaceable Kingdom serves over 3500 children and their families from three hospitals and eighteen local school districts. The retreat relies on volunteers to meet the growing need for a facility specifically designed for chronically ill and special needs children. It was originally a fishing day retreat and today children can enjoy horseback riding, swimming, a sports court, a campground, a ropes challenge course, hiking on nature trails, arts and crafts, and much more.
http://www.peaceablekingdomretreat.org/home.do
HSSP: Misericordia Home (Chicago, IL)
The mission of Misericordia/Heart of Mercy is to support individuals with developmental disabilities in maximizing their level of independence and self-determination within an environment that fosters spirituality, dignity, respect, and enhancement of quality of life. They promote development of natural family and community supports, community awareness, education and advocacy.
God’s Love We Deliver (NY, NY)
God’s Love We Deliver works to improve the health and well-being of men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS and other serious illnesses by alleviating hunger and malnutrition. They prepare and deliver nutritious, high-quality meals to people who, because of their illness, are unable to prepare meals for themselves. They also provide illness-specific nutrition education to their clients and families, care providers, and other service organizations. All services are provided free of charge.
http://www.godslovewedeliver.org/
NATIVE AMERICAN
Mescalero Apache Boys & Girls Club (Mescalero, NM)
At the Mescalero Apache Boys & Girls Club, youth participate in such activities as swimming, roller hockey, tee-ball, basketball, and an annual triathlon. The Club and Community Center bring all community members together: they host a nursery and Head Start program, as well as sponsor cultural workshops, seminars on drug abuse, field trips, youth dances, and the Youth of the Year program.
http://www.codetalk.fed.us/planet/mesc.html
Ndakinna Education Center (Greenfield Center, NY)
The Ndakinna Education Center is an affiliate of the Greenfield Review Literary Center, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit and charitable organization located in Greenfield Center, New York. The Center offers people of all ages unique hands-on learning experiences, creative presentations, and exhibit spaces focusing on regional Native American understandings, Adirondack culture, wilderness skills and awareness of the natural world. Their many wilderness based programs emphasize observation skills, interactive learning activities, critical thinking, cooperative problem solving and teambuilding for all ages. The Center is home to many educational exhibits, including Native tools, baskets, rattles, drums, shelters, clothing as well as a full-scale birch bark canoe and several wigwams.
http://www.ndcenter.org/
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Tubman Family Alliance (Minneapolis, MN)
Tubman Family Alliance provides immediate safe haven and protection for women and children in crisis with a total of 128 beds at three emergency shelters and eleven transitional housing units. In addition, a full range of support services are offered to all members of the family—men, women, and children—in Hennepin, Washington, and Ramsey counties.
http://www.tubmanfamilyalliance.org/
Crossroads Group Home (Greenville, SC)
Crossroads group home houses girls from age 9-21 who have been removed from their homes by social services or who have gotten in trouble. 28 girls live in one of two homes constantly staffed by Crossroads employees. The girls go to school and participate in extracurricular activities. They stay at the group home for 6-7 months to 2-3 years. Volunteers can help at school by tutoring, do group activities with the girls, help in the clinical department, or lead independent living skills groups, among other options.
http://www.crossroadsgrouphome.com/2002/index.htm
YOUTH & EDUCATION
Thomas S. Murphy Boys & Girls Club (Brooklyn, NY)
Thomas S. Murphy Boys & Girls Club offers a constructive alternative to the streets for children in Brooklyn. Its staff and volunteers conduct extensive youth outreach to tutor children after school as well as engage youth in extracurricular activities.
Daniel Cotter Boys & Girls Club (Chicago, IL)
The mission of the Daniel Cotter Boys & Girls Club of Chicago is to partner with families and communities to enable young people to grow up to be responsible, self-reliant, caring adults. The Club serves almost 1,000 neighborhood youngsters—predominantly African-American and Hispanic—who are residents of the housing complex or the Lincoln Park, Lakeview and Logan Square communities. The Club offers more than recreation—it’s a full-service agency helping entire families tackle problems through a variety of programs, including: scholarship, computer education for children and adults, outreach service/prevention, physical education, and music.
http://www.bgcc.org/who_we_are/
Residential College: Hialeah Institute (Miami, FL)
The Hialeah Institute is an alternative school for grades 7-12 started and supported by the Cuban-American National Council. The school provides special attention to inner-city students who are considered at high risk for dropping out. The program at the school addresses the issues of academic deficiencies, low motivation, family conflicts and problems with violence.
http://www.cnc.org/programs.html
Epworth Children and Family Services (St. Louis, MO)
Epworth is a residential treatment center where it is believed that every child has infinite worth. It serves emotionally challenged adolescents aged 11-18 at a beautiful 8.5-acre campus. Boys and girls receive 24-hour intensive treatment; individual, group and family therapy; state-certified special education; psychiatric consultation; comprehensive medical evaluation and care; recreation therapy and opportunities for spiritual growth.
UAAO: Asian Youth Services (Chicago, IL)
Asian Youth Services is an after school tutoring program for students ages 5 to 20. Serving between 40 and 70 youths, the children are primarily of Cambodian descent with a few participants of Laotian and Vietnamese origins. Eagerly coming to AYS to learn everyday skills in subjects such as math, Spanish or history, the children come from families with parents who have had no formal schooling. Almost all of these children receive public aid and rely on AYS for assistance beyond academic tutoring. Many families of AYS participants are first and second generation immigrants - many of them lived through the Southeast Asian Holocaust.
http://www.asianyouthservices.org/
HIV/AIDS
Catskill Rural AIDS Services (CRAS) (Oneonta, NY)
Catskill Rural AIDS Services (CRAS) is an independent volunteer organization serving Delaware and Otsego counties in central New York. CRAS provides educational programs and support services for people living with AIDS and their families through a network of local volunteers. Currently, CRAS offers case management services and can assist with housing, transportation, food, medication, and Social Security. CRAS also organizes recreational field trips, dinners and luncheons for its clients.
Community Servings (Boston, MA)
As greater Boston’s meals program for people living with AIDS, Community Servings delivers 3500 free, hot, nutritious meals every week to some 700 men, women, and children infected with or affected by the disease. They nutritionally tailor their meals to meet the complex dietary needs of people ill with AIDS, and each meal contains enough food for lunch, dinner, and a snack. 95% of their clients live at or below the poverty line. Their clients are gay and straight and of diverse racial backgrounds.
Project Lazarus (New Orleans, LA)
Project Lazarus was founded out of compassion and service to all people. Project Lazarus provides services to people with AIDS who can no longer live independently, or whose family can no longer take care of them. The primary purpose of Project Lazarus is to provide continuity of care in a homelike environment. The highest goal of Project Lazarus is to enhance the quality of life of those it serves. Project Lazarus does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, religion, gender, economic status, sexual orientation, or handicap.
BORDERS AND IMMIGRATION
Humane Borders (Tucson, AZ)
Hundreds of thousands of men, women and children face economic disaster in their homelands and migrate to the United States every year. Many of them come across the U.S.-Mexico border illegally in Arizona. Increasing numbers of them die every year making the attempt. The death toll is the direct result of U.S. border control policy, which ignores the economic forces on both sides of the border driving human beings to make such choices. Humane Borders, motivated by faith, offers humanitarian assistance to those in need through more than 70 emergency water stations on and near the border.
Annunciation House (El Paso, TX/Juarez, Mexico)
For 25 years, Annunciation House has provided hospitality to immigrants and refugees on the US-Mexican border. The organization has grown from the original house (Annunciation House), to include Casa Vides (a house of hospitality for those seeking political asylum and those with longer-term needs) and Casa Peregrina in Juarez (a house of hospitality for women and children). The fourth, Casa Emaus, is located in a squatter’s neighborhood and provides support and space for community building efforts. The volunteer community has grown to a full-time volunteer staff of 20.
http://www.annunciationhouse.org/
Bronx International High School (NY, NY)
Opened in 2001, Bronx International serves students entering with a wide range of educational experience, many with little or no knowledge of English. Unlike other programs, where kids have some classes in English as a Second Language but are left to sink or swim in other courses, International focuses on language development in every class. 9th and 10th graders are grouped together in classes to accommodate language differences and are encouraged to learn cooperatively. Students who cannot understand English are paired with more advanced peers who speak their language and can help their classmates navigate the material and follow the class.
http://www.insideschools.org/fs/school_profile.php?id=1176&page=2
FCJ Hamilton House Refugee Project (Toronto, Canada)
The FCJ Hamilton House Refugee Project, located in Toronto, Canada, was founded in August 1991. Its goals are to provide temporary affordable shelter for women and children; to provide to refugees and other uprooted people education, counseling and other support services, including interpretation services; referral to legal assistance, employment training, programs on Canadian culture and life, and other educational workshops.
http://www.fcjsisters.ca/HamiltonHouse/
Cambodian Association of Illinois (Chicago, IL)
The Mission of the Cambodian Association of Illinois is to enable refugees and immigrants from Cambodia residing in Illinois, especially those in metropolitan Chicago, to become self-sufficient, productive participants in U.S. society while preserving and enhancing their cultural heritage and their sense of belonging to this community.
United Farm Workers/La Union Del Pueblo Entero (UFW/LUPE) (San Juan, TX)
United Farm Workers (UFW/LUPE) is the organization founded by workers’ rights activist Cesar Chavez that addresses issues facing farm workers across the country, including poor working conditions and low wages. Volunteers will work on organic cooperative fields, distribute information on workers’ rights at the border, and visit colonials to talk to farm workers.
http://www.lupenet.org/
ENVIRONMENT
Nature Conservancy (Southern Pines, NC)
The Nature Conservancy’s mission is to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. Funds are helping to: improve water quality, strengthen agriculture, expand tourism, maintain North Carolina’s natural beauty, prevent incompatible development around our military bases, buy land and build facilitates for local and state parks, and preserve habitats for native wildlife and plants.
World Hunger Relief (Elm Mott, TX)
World Hunger Relief was established in the 1960s to teach farmers from developing countries the techniques of sustainable agricultural production and problem-solving so that they could bring this knowledge back to their native countries. Today it operates as a self-sufficient organic farm. Workers also learn approaches to community development, cross-cultural communication, and adult education; understand the socio-political contexts of world hunger and identify appropriate responses; and become familiar with food technology, nutrition, and health issues.
Cumberland Trails Conference (Crossville, TN)
As a non-profit Associate Organization organized under Tennessee Trails Association (TTA), the Cumberland Trail Conference (CTC) seeks to encourage the development of the Cumberland Trail to meet the recreational needs of park visitors and area residents. TTA/CTC assists in protecting, preserving and promoting the Cumberland Trail, and assists with organizing volunteers and supporters to help build, maintain, and provide activities on the Cumberland Trail. This includes trail maintenance and building outings, trail-building training sessions, providing environmental and cultural education, and organizing periodic hikes on the CT.
http://www.cumberlandtrail.org/
