Friends for Youth at the Planetarium!

Friends for Youth brought a group of 6 mentoring Friendships to the College of San Mateo Planetarium show last Friday, May 14. We learned about the upcoming Transit of Venus that will occur June 5-6. Venus Transit occurs when we can see Venus pass directly in front of the Sun. The next transits of Venus won't occur again until December 2117!

For more info on this, check out: http://www.astrosociety.org/education/publications/tnl/78/78.html.

We also caught wind of an epic event scheduled for later this month, a partial Solar Eclipse! For more info on this, check out: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/16/annular-solar-eclipse-2012_n_1522000.html.

We had a blast traveling through the Universe with our guide, Professor Stanford, as he reminded us that we are all made out of the same stuff that stars are made of.

The show was free, but the astronomy department accepts donations for this worthy "tour" of our sky. To get more info on this awesome star studded show, check out: http://collegeofsanmateo.edu/astronomy/planetarium.asp.

Help Spread the Word about Volunteering at the US Open

The US Open golf tournament in San Francisco is less than one month away and we are still in need of volunteers.  Friends for Youth will receive a donation relative to the number of volunteers we provide--maybe over $10,000!

All participants receive free access to this SOLD OUT event as well as free parking for each day they volunteer.  Volunteers are allowed and encouraged to watch golf before/after their scheduled shift.  Both adult and high school aged volunteers are welcome.

HOW TO HELP
1.  Volunteer http://www.friendsforyouth.org/USOpen.html — on your own or with a group of friends or colleagues. The more the merrier!
2.  Think about people who might be interested in this opportunity.
    •  People who like golf
    •  High school students who need to do community service hours
    •  Service clubs looking for group volunteer opportunities
    •   Anyone who wants to make a difference in the lives of at-risk youth
3.  Tell everyone! We have many spaces to fill.
    •   Forward this email to people who might be interested
    •   Send people to the US Open page of our website http://www.friendsforyouth.org/USOpen.html
   •  Print a flier http://www.friendsforyouth.org/files/Golf/USOpen_flier.pdf and post it in your office, gym, or some other relevant community place.

Senior Friend Group: Empathy + Compassionate Listening = Making a Difference!

May 3rd a group of 10 Senior Friends had the opportunity to hear from a truly gifted presenter and expert in the field of Empathy & Compassion, Lynn Johnson, Co-Founder/CEO of Glitter & Razz Productions. Lynn captivated the audience from the start of our workshop to the very last minute. Attendees hardly had a chance to grab a snack as we were all challenged to be engaged from one activity to another. Lynn was clear on the intentions behind all the exercises in which we participated. If you been an outsider looking at a snap shot of these activities, you might have been left wondering what crazy activity was going on in the conference room!

We spent about half the evening stretching our understanding of the word and practice of the word “Empathy.” The rest of our time was spent learning about exceptional examples of empathy and how we can use our new understanding of the practice in our relationships with the young people we support.

A special thank you goes out to all our participants who were able to share their personal experiences of empathy with the group. As Lynn said to us that evening…

“Each of us has stories.  We are better when we are able to tell them.  We are better when we are able to hear them.”

Thank you!

Lynn Johnson

Co-Founder/CEO

Glitter & Razz Productions

www.glitterandrazz.com

Notes from SF attendees…

I thought the event was great and a lot of fun.  Thanks -Henry

I enjoyed the idea that people want to express emotions but often don't realize it, so you have to help them along, if you possess the requisite skill, in doing so. -Ray

To say that I truly enjoyed the Empathy & Compassion workshop, would be an understatement.  I find myself wanting to learn more about being empathetic and to practice in all of my domains, especially in challenging situations. Thank you for sharing the uplifting story & video.  What a wonderful way to float home! With gratitude, -Antonia

How to Talk about Child Abuse Prevention

For many people who don't regularly have exposure to abused or neglected youth, it can be tough to talk about the issue or even to just consider that another person is capable of hurting a child.

When we provide training for youth professionals based on our resource, SAFE (Screening Applicants for Effectiveness): Guidelines to Prevent Child Molestation in Mentoring and Youth-Serving Organizations, we always talk about the intensity of the issue and range of emotions that may arise during the workshop. In nearly every training, there has been at least one participant who reveals that he or she was sexually abused as a child. For these youth professionals, it can be overwhelming, anxiety-provoking, or empowering (or all three) to take on a new role of being a positive and preventative force when it comes to child abuse.

It's natural to be upset even hearing the words, especially if you have no prior experience of your own or someone you know. Even though it is an extremely uncomfortable topic that generates anxiety and fear, the potential danger for youth and the potential liability for organizations are too great for us to not address it.

We are compelled to confront "society’s historical attitude about sexual victimization of children [that] can generally be summed up in one word: denial.” Lanning (2001)

Where We Come In...

Volunteer screening and monitoring processes are a necessary but intrusive process for programs designed for vulnerable youth to spend unsupervised time with an adult previously unknown to either the child and parents/ caregivers.

However, there is little research focusing on effective mentor screening and youth safety. In addition to not having evidence-based guidelines, agencies face numerous obstacles in creating their policies and procedures. Denial of the issue is a typical response, especially in tighter-knit communities. Perpetrators realize that gaining the trust of the adult community is key to having unrestricted access to children. Communities often do not believe reports of well-known individuals who are accused of inappropriate conduct with a child. Should sexual abuse happen to a mentee, there is pressure to conceal incidents for fear of potential liability and loss of credibility. Many incidents of child sexual abuse go unreported; one survey of adults who were sexually victimized by adults as children reported that 91% did not disclose the abuse when it was happening.

We recognize that it is the responsibility of all adults and all programs that serve children and youth to do everything they can to prevent child sexual abuse. Through our resource SAFE and related trainings, we help organizations strengthen their tools and processes.

Recognized as the leader in this topic by the field, we're ready to help more programs keep more children SAFE.

We’re continuing our campaign to raise funds for publishing a second edition of our highly recommended resource, SAFE. Created with our over 30 years of experience and recent research, SAFE is the solution to preventing child molesters from gaining access to vulnerable children through mentoring and other volunteer programs. Help us reach more youth professionals with a new resource and training to prevent child sexual abuse. This version will include a trainer’s manual, featuring updated research on child sexual abusers, more recommended tools and processes for programs to implement, and information from our chapter, Mentor Screening and Youth Safety, included in the upcoming Handbook on Youth Mentoring, 2nd edition, to be published in 2012.

If you believe it's important to inform more youth professionals - including teachers, coaches, and youth program staff - please consider donating; even $10 will help!

Make a Secure Online Donation through our website

Make a Donation Through Causes if you're already on Facebook

Thank you to those of you who have already committed to keeping more youth SAFE!

Check out our SAFE 2012 Campaign page for more tips, statistics, and resources about mentor screening and youth safety.