Hi All,

The Youth Foundation, Vail Valley Foundation's education arm, and the Vail Preforming Arts Academy (VPAA) have been working with the children at Gypsum Elementary School for the last few months teaching them dance.  After exposing all the children to the basics of dance, worming up, movement, rhythm, and coordinated partnering, the decision was made to separate the class into two groups.  One would continue dancing with Anna and Colin from the VPAA, and prepare to dance at the annual Star Dancing Gala fundraiser.   While the other half of the class would work with me and focus on general fitness and teamwork.  

The experience has been great and lent itself to many teachable moments.  Most importantly honoring and respecting diversity.  All of the children I work with compose letters thanking Anna and Colin for the cultural experience and exposure to something novel.  We look forward to seeing how all the children progress and watching Salsa & Tango this summer at the Star Dancing Gala this July!!!   

Thanks,

Josh Leach, PwrHrs Staff and all around awesome person!

Challenge: Nature with the Youth Foundation!

The Youth Foundation's Challenge: Nature is an outdoor-based experiential education program that is aimed at helping students that have been identified as needing extra support. Our goal is to aid in each student’s self discovery of the skills and knowledge needed to successfully learn and live within a community. 

Winter Session with KidSTRONG!

The winter season has brought all kinds of new activities for our kids.

Right now we are in the middle of our KidSTRONG enrichment classes. We are teaching jiu-jitsu, playing soccer, and talking about healthy choices of foods and behaviors at home. This includes nutrition games, self-defense and anti bullying, soccer, as well as other enrichment opportunities for elementary school students. These classes are being designed to fit the age specific challenges and needs. As a childcare professional, it has been extremely fun to watch the kids respond with a lot of enthusiasm to learn and smiling through the process.

World-Renowned Violinst, Chee-Yun, Visits the Vail Valley

The third annual June S. Kang Love of the Arts Scholarship benefit concert was held on Friday, January 13th at the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek. including performances by renowned violinist Chee-Yun accompanied by classical guitarist Zaira Meneses, Jing Want on violin, Conor Hanick on piano, Jeremy Turner on cello, along with soprano and vocalist Courtenay Budd. The Korean-born Chee-Yun's first public performance was at age 8 took place in her native Seoul, after she won the Grand Prize of the Korean Times Competition. At 13, she came to the United States and was invited to perform the Vieuxtemps Concerto No. 5 in a Young People's Concert with the New York Philharmonic. Two years later, she performed in Carnegie Hall with the New York String Orchestra. Chee-Yun, charming, charismatic and deeply passionate about her art, has also played with the San Francisco Symphony, the National Symphony, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the New York Chamber Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Rochester Philharmonic and the Cincinnati Symphony. Overseas, she has made numerous tours with such orchestras as the Haifa Symphony, the Hong Kong Philharmonic and Germany´s Braunschweig Orchestra and the NDR Radio Leipzig.

Way more than 21 sentences on being the Magic Bus Program Operations Coordinator

Greetings followers!  

I’ve been with The Youth Foundation since September 2010 and I have had the pleasure of dabbling in many areas of the Youth Foundation team, growing from administrative tasks within PwrHrs, to managing scholarships and providing a supportive mentor to our Scholarship students to forming academic support for the high school-aged Community Coaches through DREAM First, future-focused programming. As one of the bilingual full-time staff member, I had the opportunity to expand my horizons within the Youth Foundation on the Magic Bus Early Childhood Program by filling in for Magic Bus staff members.  The small amount of exposure I received sparked something within me and, by a stroke of luck, I am now able to work full-time within that program! 

Robotics Round Two!

“No one has yet fully realized the wealth of sympathy, kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure.” – Emma Goldman

Imagine yourself in a room where you could express your creativity, use your imagination, challenge your brain, test your knowledge and utilize learned skills. For every person this room would be full of different things, but overall would commonly be a positive outlet to be and do what makes you feel most yourself.  I know that in order to achieve any of the above it is important to be surrounded by people you trust, know that mistakes are welcomed not feared and to have tools that allow you to focus on a goal. For the children in Pwr. Hrs., The Youth Foundation is a safe, non-judgmental, and trusted face that understands the wealth in investing in a child.  Like in the world, children in Pwr. Hrs. come from all different backgrounds. Therefore it is important that the educational experiences we provide acknowledge their life experiences, explores their interests and honors their achievements.

FUN: The True Nature

Girls on the new Girl PowHER Snowshoe Team are learning as they go. How do I put on these awkward shoes? Why do they make me walk funny? Why am I freezing one minute and sweating the next? Where on earth am I going? Who talked me into this? Am I having fun yet?

Ells Angels Snowshoe Team

BC Snowshoe Adventure Series

January 8, 2012