Mary’s Pizza Shack (Boyes Hot Springs and the Plaza)
Readers Books
Pharmaca
Unique Salon on Broadway
Valley of the Moon Teen Center in Boyes Hot Springs

Questions?

Call: 707-939-1452

Email: Cristin_lawrence@comcast.net

Don’t miss out on a fun night and a wonderful way to support Sonoma Valley’s Teens!

Sonoma High senior Brianna Garcia gets help in choosing a suit from My Girlfriend’s Closet owner Fran Meininger.

Fran Meininger, owner of “My Girlfriend’s Closet,” a fashion consignment clothing store on First Street West, shared her expertise about job interview and work attire with teens on March 3.  Meininger’s workshop is part of Sonoma Valley Teen Services “Skills for Life” program that helps teens prepare for their future.

“Clothes should showcase your personality, style and intelligence in a job or sales interview situation,” said Meininger. “Your appearance makes an impression, and clothes should not distract from your smile and conversation.”
Meininger showed the teens several mannequins that were dressed to reflect appropriate job interview outfits for various businesses.  “The employer looks at you as a prospective company representative, so find out before the interview how people dress in the businesses where you seek to work,” Meininger said.

The teens browsed through the store and tried on blouses, skirts, suits and shoes that reflected their personalities and styles, as well as being appropriate for their chosen fields of work.  Jewelry added to the finished look that gave them a feeling of confidence and professionalism.
The participating students said that they learned how to look for outfits that complement their skin tone and body type. “We had fun mixing and matching clothes and left the shop with purchases that made us feel comfortable and prepared for an interview,” said Sonoma Valley High senior Briana Garcia.

Meininger consults with teens who seek help in choosing affordable and attractive clothes to wear for many occasions. She can be contacted at  933-3050.
For questions and information about “Skills for Life” classes, email classes@Svteens.org or call 939-1452 or visit  www.svteens.org.

What’s wrong with kids these days?

I am sure there are a multitude of ways individuals in our community might answer the above question:

“They are lazy.”

“They do not respect adults.”

“They spend too much time in front of TV and computer screens.”

But I would concur with the following view, stated by the Childrens Defense Fund in its “Cradle to Prison Pipeline” report:

“… adults are what’s wrong with our children.”

Adult hypocrisy is on full display for our youth to observe and learn from, again as stated in the CDF report:

“… adults telling children to be honest while lying and cheating in our homes, offices and public life. Adults telling children not to be violent while marketing
and glorifying violence; … Adults telling children to be healthy while selling them junk food and addicting them to smoke and drink and careless sex.”

What is there for us to do in the face of all these negative influences? Well actually, it is not rocket science. There is a great body of evidence and research around what it takes to transition even the highest risk youth to successful adulthood. The only question is whether our community has the will to follow these well-described formulas for success.

The Project on Effective Interventions at Harvard University has provided a blueprint whereby, communities can increase rates of successful young adulthood by working effectively toward the following goals:

1. Youth are prepared for employment and higher education.
2. Youth have expanded labor market prospects.
3. Youth have increased prospects of thriving, belonging and engaging.
4. The highest risk youth receive effective services and supports.

The good news is that there is a local effort that is trying to make headway on at least three of these four goals: Sonoma Valley Teen Services. The bad news is that they are woefully under-resourced to be able to do this job at the scale that is needed. Their successful award by Impact 100 last year went a long way toward establishing a foundation and service model that is working well with these youth.

Today they have a successful youth-run food business, Lovin Oven, and other services and activities, at their Sonoma Valley High School and Boyes Springs, locations that are steering hundreds of youth away from negative behaviors.

But this is not enough by a long shot. Increasing the number of youth making a successful transition to adulthood is not the sole responsibility of any single agency; rather it is a shared community concern. And that means this community cannot sit back and watch this promising effort go down the predictable nonprofit path of constantly trying to piece together funding from a variety of sources just to maintain itself on a yearly basis. This is a recipe for, if not ultimate failure in the long term, then at the very least, providing a level of services that only scratches the surface of the problem.

What Sonoma Valley Teen Services needs now is another substantial grant or support from a wealthy donor to build on the solid foundation laid by the Impact 100 grant.

They need an endowment that will act to sustain them as a strong pillar in the community for decades to come.

They need caring adults in the community to supplement their existing dedicated and effective staff and to provide these youth with not only additional services and classes, but – more importantly – role models and supporters.

These youth deserve to know that this community values them and is invested in preparing them to be the future stewards of our local economy and community institutions.

If we are not prepared to do this, well, then just let’s be honest in answering the opening question of this essay: What’s wrong with kids these days?

We are.

• • •

Edwin Ferran 
is director of Learning and Innovation
for the Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County.
 For more information on how to support this effort, e-mail him at eferran@capsonoma.org.

The youth will cook and serve a gourmet four-course tasting room, created in the commercial kitchen within the teen center. The meal begins with an amuse bouche of chile, cilantro and lime marinated prawn wrapped in crisp fingerling potatoes. The appetizer will be a butternut squash and chorizo soup with pan dulce. For the main course, green corn tamales, Puebla chicken and potatoes, rice, frijoles de fiesta and Jalisco slaw will be served. The meal ends on a sweet note with prickly pear sorbet with cinnamon and cajeta tuilles.

The cost is $50, with proceeds benefit the center’s work skills programs designed to engage Sonoma Valley youth in gaining experience for a sustainable future. For tickets and more information please contact Rebecca Hermosillo at 939-1452. The Valley of the Moon Teen Center is located at 17440 Sonoma Highway.

Rebecca Hermosillo, Cristin Lawrence and Tim Boeve of Sonoma Valley Teen Services

From the Sonoma Index Tribune:
Thanks to the $100,000 Impact100 grant, the youth of Sonoma, particularly those who may not be college bound, will have increased access to job skills through an innovative new program of Sonoma Valley Teen Services.

Sonoma Valley Teen Services was formed last year when Operation Youth and the Valley of the Moon Teen Center merged. Their Skills for Life program was democratically selected as the grant recipient during Impact100′s annual meeting on Saturday.

The program will helps teens develop business skills and find apprenticeships to guide their career paths.

“We’re delighted,” said Tim Boeve, president of the Teen Services board. “It’s a huge, huge shot in the arm for us.”

The program has already proven effective. Teen Services runs the No Name Café at Sonoma Valley High School, where students train to become baristas and gain an understanding of the food service industry, from making drinks to handling cash. Over at the Teen Center, four students successfully launched the Lovin Oven, making baked goods and prepared foods they now sell at the Tuesday night farmers market. Demand is now so high, Lovin Oven recently brought in more teens to help with the baking, employing even more students in a time when there are few job prospects.

“It’s something we already know works,” Boeve said. “It’s already proven to be successful.”

Boeve said the funds would be used to help both Lovin Oven and the No Name Café.

In the application, Boeve explained how these two lines of business could eventually turn into revenue streams for Teen Services to use to continue funding the program when the grant funds have dried up. In addition, Teen Services plans to expand the Skills for Life program to offer apprenticeships in industries such as automobile mechanics, sound system installation and other areas teens have expressed an interest in exploring.

“It’s a simple idea, giving them the experience to succeed,” Boeve said. “We want to link up that interest and drive with those who have expertise to teach.”

Grant money will be used to raise to full-time status Teen Services’ two part-time employees, Rebecca Hermosillo – the executive director of the Teen Center – and Cristin Lawrence, who oversees the programs established by Operation Youth.

“This is exactly what the organization needed,” Boeve said. “We didn’t have the staff power to develop this program until now.”

Impact100 was formed in 2009 when 100 women came together and each promised to give $1,000 to form a $100,000 grant to be given to a Valley nonprofit. After thoroughly vetting each of the proposals, a handful of finalists are selected to make a presentation during the annual meeting, after which each woman gets to vote for the project she’d like to see get the funds.

The funds are given every quarter and reviewed by Impact 100 to ensure they are spent appropriately.

“We need to be good stewards with the member’s money,” said B.J. Bischoff, communication chair for Impact100.

Last year, the Boys & Girls Club of Sonoma Valley received the grant to launch its College Bound program to help provide members with comprehensive support to get into college.

“The Boys & Girls Club presented Saturday. They had four of the kids in the College Bound program speak about what impact meant to them,” said Bischoff. “That made all of the women feel wonderful.”

This year, the organization attracted 157 members, meaning Impact100 was able to give away $57,000 Greater Impact Community Grants ranging from $3,500 to $15,000, which were also selected by a democratic vote. The recipients were:

• Friends in Sonoma Helping (FISH) received $15,000 to improve its clothing room.

• The Sebastiani Theatre Foundation got $3,500 to replace a fire door.

• The Sonoma Ecology Center received $7,000 to bring electricity to the Sonoma Garden Park.

• The Sonoma Valley Community Health Center got $9,000 for equipment for new exam rooms.

• The Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance got $7,500 for the Girls Empowerment Fund.

• The Women’s Initiative for Self-Employment received $15,000 for micro-enterprise training.

Impact100 is launching its membership drive for the new fiscal year. Any woman who joins by Dec. 31 will be invited to vote for next year’s grant recipient. To learn more, visit www.impact100sonoma.org or call 939-5007.

From Impact100 Sonoma:
That was the message that greeted us and was constantly reinforced as members and friends of Impact100 Sonoma gathered at the Sonoma Valley Teen Services (SVTS) on Saturday, October 1st to learn about SVTS progress as a result of our $100,000 grant to their Skills for Life program.

“¿Listo?”  [Ready?], asked Jean Hopeman-Chambers (member of both the SVTS Board and Impact100) of a smiling, but slightly nervous young man named Oscar, and he and the rest of the SVTS speakers certainly were.  Following Impact100 updates, we were treated to an energetic report of accomplishments that left us all with jaws agape (and often teary eyes) as we learned of all that has been achieved in only three short months since receiving our gift.

SVTS Board President, Tim Boeve, reminded us that in 2009 more than 50% of our high school students did not go on to college.  “This is important to change, but it is also important to recognize that there will always be a percentage of our young population that will follow a different pathway.”  It is those young people whom SVTS is helping to make positive choices through the Skills for Life Program.

Program Managers, Rebecca Hermosillo and Cristin Lawrence, and SVTS Board member, Osias Encarnacion, gave us updates on the numerous programs that are part of this effective program.  A more detailed progress report is available on the Impact100 website, click here, but here are just a few of the highlights they shared:

Lovin’ Oven program

The primary goal for this time period was to re-establish the Lovin’ Oven presence in the Farmers’ Markets and to grow student and volunteer participation.

• Students decided to focus on the higher revenue generation Saturday market and to apply for the Friday market.
• Student participation has grown by 11 new core members and 21 part-time.
• The SVTS is now a fully qualified Food Safety Certification provider.
• Adult volunteers include Anea Kamahele, who is leading an effort to increase the food product offerings and the initiation of a ‘pop-up’ restaurant event to feature teen culinary students.

Esther, a founder of the program:  “I was given a life opportunity and now I can help others to have similar opportunities.”

No Name Café program

With the goals of connecting more teens in more significant ways and improving the sustainability of the No Name Café in theSonomaValleyHigh School, the reports are very positive:

• Sales are up 73%
• Whole Foods is making quarterly donations so that prices can better fit a student budget, yet still provide a profit.