Columbia Second Chance

Youth In Action was out at Columbia Second Chance on 6-28. While we were there we helped clean the kitty condos. We got to meet many of the residents of the kitty condos and play and socialize with them. It was a lot of fun and we helped out a lot.

Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture

YIA had a great time at the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture's Urban Farm. We learned a lot about farming and how important it is. We were able to plant an entire row of both zuccini and sweet potatoes. One of our volunteers, Aaron, said his favorite part was digging up potatoes that were planted in the ground. It was a blast and I honestly cannot wait to do it again in July!

Welcome Home Inc. Navigation Course

It was hot, but that didn't keep 5 YIA volunteers from coming out to this event. Unfortunately, a few of the veterans from Welcome Home that were going to come out had medical appointments and a few more were sick. It was just us, but the staff of Welcome Home wanted to go ahead and do the event anyway. We were able to learn a lot about the military and begin to understand why homelessness is such a problem amongst veterans. We learned all about how to use a GPS system to navigate terrain and find a destination. I better give props to Ethan and Luke who won the navigation contest, but it was a valiant effort by all!

Lunch in the Park

We made a big difference today! YIA served 156 lunches to kids who may not have gotten food otherwise. These kids depend on this program and I am so proud of our YIA volunteers for what they did today!

Ronald McDonald House!

On June 16th we did the "adopt a snack" program at the Ronald McDonald House. We were able to make two fruit pizzas for the occupants of the Ronald McDonald House. This can be a great benefit for those staying at the Ronald McDonald House, giving them a quick and fun thing to eat when they need a pick me up. Our volunteers were very creative and made some sweet looking fruit pizzas.

Family Fun Fest!!!!

We had 6 of our finest volunteeers come out to help the City of Columbia's Parks and Recreation put on the Family Fun Fest! We got to pass out stickers to kids who were at the Family Fun Fest at Flat Branch Park. We were also able to give kids temporary tattoos and face paint. It was a blast hanging out with the volunteers and the kids. We have another volunteer event with the Family Fun Fest in July and would love to have you come out!

Boone County Health Department

We had a blast on Monday at the Boone County Health Department. There we learned about what they do at the health department and we learned about using a home garden to create a sustainable lifestyle. We passed that information along to a group of kids who we helped start a container garden. Great Event!

Urban Population Outreach Program

This saturday was an awesome event! The weather was perfect and we had a great time. 7 volunteers came out and helped us with invasive plant removal. We learned about Missouri plants while we took a hike through Rock Bridge State Park. We finished up with a quick cave tour.

We actually made the frontpage of the Missourian with our event!

The Food Bank of Central and Northeast Missouri

We had a great turn out this week for the Food Bank. We learned about the difference the food bank has on our community. We were able to help repackage 12 big boxes of food during our volunteer event. If anyone is interested in continuing to help in this effort we have a few lunch in the park events that continue the mission of the Food Bank in the community.

Rainbow House

Thanks to all of our volunteers who came out and built a garden for Rainbow House's Teen Emergency Shelter. I know they appreciate our help and they are planning on using that garden to teach teens how to grow food on their own to help them live independently. By giving only three hours of your time you have made a difference in the lives of youth who need help.

Stream Team!

Stream Team was a great event! We had 8 volunteers brave the heat and clean up Flat Branch Creek. We picked up 15 bags of trash in just 1 1/2 hours! Afterwards we all went up to Sparky's and had some ice cream to cool down. A few of us were able to walk around MU's campus too! It was a great event and we really made a difference.

Last Open House

Tonight is the last open house before the begining of the summer program. I would encourage everyone to drop by the ARC anytime between 4:00-6:00pm. There you can ask questions, find out more information, and sign up for specific events. If you can't make it out to the open house today that is ok too. Contact me with any questions you may have or events that you want to do. However, most events have a maximum amount of volunteers and priority will be given to individuals singing up at the open houses.

I look forward to seeing everyone this afternoon!
John Osborn
2011 YIA Intern
Call me: (573) 808-2112
or Email me: ovsinter@gocolumbiamo.com