RSSChildren of Promise, NYC
Nov 16
Programs of Interest Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Children of Promise 1 Comment
by Kerry Roeder
In July of 2009, I came across an organization that was seeking out volunteer librarians to help create a library and I immediately jumped at the chance to be a part of this unique experience. Children of Promise, NYC is a non profit organization, located in Bedford-Stuyvesant, that is “committed to embracing and empowering children of incarcerated parents to break the cycle of intergeneration involvement in the criminal justice system.” Founded last year by Sharon Content, CPNYC looks to provide guidance, promote positive social relationships, develop leadership skills, and enhance academic performance. Without organizations like this, 70% of children of imprisoned parents wind up in the criminal justice system themselves. Furthermore, they must deal with the rejection and stigma of having a parent in the system. In response, CPNYC provides an innovative after-school program, as well as a summer camp and mentoring. (Read more here…)
I got involved with CPNYC this summer after they received a generous donation of 500 books, in order to start a library. With the incredible support of program assistant Dominique Jones, myself and five other volunteers began putting together a library. We spent the summer cataloging and organizing the books we had, coming up with rules and programming for the library, and trying to bring in more donations. Here are pictures of the space that we were given to work with.
After a lot of hard work, creativity, and fun, the library began to serve the after school program in September. There are 85 children who regularly attend the program and each group now has designated library time once a week. Volunteer librarians (many library science students from the local grad schools) read to the children, do activities, and help with homework. Below are pictures of what generous donations and hard volunteer work have now allowed us to create for the kids.
We have come a long way, but we would like to continue to expand our collection in order to best serve our kids. If you are interested in donating a book or two, we have set up an Amazon Wish List, from which to choose. There are also plenty of opportunities to volunteer – as a mentor, librarian, or at a one time event – any help is appreciated. For volunteer information, you can check out the website or contact Dominique Jones. If you have any additional questions about the library or know of anyone who might be able to make a donation, feel free to contact me at kroeder@cpnyc.org Thank you for supporting our work!
http://www.childrenofpromisenyc.org/
http://www.childrenofpromisenyc.org/join.html
http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/registry.html?ie=UTF8&type=wishlist&id=2AIXT7R2ZFUI6
