YCS Newsletter
June 2012
Joshua a Blossoms recipientJerry CooneyMs Hull  & daughterSayre House
Harold & Doris Williams honored at Blossoms
YCS VP Barbara Markell, Doris & Harold Williams, Blossoms scholarship recipient Benito Flores, and YCS President Richard Mingoia

 

Blossoms Art Exhibit showcases our students creativity and musical talents 

   

The YCS Blossoms Art exhibit at Bergen PAC broke new ground in its 9th year. In addition to the inspiring art work and choral presentation, there was a beautiful violin performance by students from GW school, and a touching musical tribute by YCS teachers, guitarist Joe Segro and violinist Laticia Lewis, to thank our first Blossoms honorees, Harold & Doris Williams. The Williams have juried several of the shows and have been generous supporters of the Blossoms scholarship. For the first time the couple attended the exhibit and personally met the scholarship recipient.

 

              
golfers in the green
Golf chair, Chuck DiPietro (right) on
the course with friends


The 11th Annual YCS Fore the Kids Golf Invitational

Inclement weather did little to dampen the spirit of golfers at the 2012 YCS Fore the Kids Golf Outing.  After an hour rain delay, the golfers took to the course.


Jerry Cooney receives gift from young men
Gerry Cooney with students at reception 


Later, at an evening reception,Gerry Cooney, former Golden Glove winner and teacher, mentor and father figure to many young men at YCS, was honored for his countless contributions to YCS.
 
Cooney was surprised with a video retrospective of his time in the ring and mentoring teens at the Kilbarchan facility.

View Photo album 

 NJACYF award winners           
        
       Congratulations!

The NJ Alliance for Children Youth and Families (NJACYF) honored Anne Marie Forestiere and Anne Hearn at their annual conference.  

 

Forestiere (2nd right) was named northern region "Clinician of the Year," for her outstanding work as a therapist at the YCS Therapeutic Nursery in East Orange.  Hearn (2nd left) received the Jack Breakstone Volunteer of the Year award, and was cited as a model volunteer for more than 8 years at the YCS Cedarbrook Home. 

Young volunteers are our hope for the future.   
Thanks to the energy and creativity of these young volunteers,
the quality of life for the children in our care is a little better.
Victoria Roth at Sayre House
 
Victoria Roth (center left), a senior at West Chester U., spent an afternoon beading bracelets and getting to know the girls at Sayre House.
 

  

  

young women run marathon for YCS camp

 


Jen Samuels (r) and Chelsea Burger
ran the Brooklyn 1/2 marathon on May 19th and raised more than $2000 for YCS summer camp.

 

 

 

 

young boy collects pennies for ice pops

Five year old Nicolas Com
petiello raised money  to buy juice ice pops for children attending YCS summer camp. He called his kindergarden project '"Pennies for Popsicles." With the help of his mom Danyel, Nicolas purchased 800 pops and bubble machines for the campers. 

 

  
   Working towards our mission with our Corporate Partners
 volunteers build indoor playground at nurseery
When GlaxoSmithKline learned that the children at the Therapeutic Nursery in Secaucus did not have a safe place for outdoor play, they came up with a plan to convert the second floor of the nursery in to an indoor playground.

With the assistance of over a dozen of their employees, a spacious play area was created. It is complete with a colorful hand painted mural, slides, a basketball hoop, tricycles and toys that help the children develop their gross motor skills. The $3,000 project was completed in two days.

  

Bank of Tokyo at May Academy

 

   

Volunteers from Bank of Tokyo had so much fun planting flowers with the students at May Academy last year, they returned again this spring with flats of colorful plants and ideas on beautifying the school's grounds.

 

 

 

 

For more than a decade, the National Cristina Foundation has been donating  refurbished desktop and laptop computers and monitors to YCS that are valued at more than $100,000. Our IT department has disseminated the computers to our schools, residences and offices throughout the agency.  The IT team pictured here displays their latest trove of donations.

 

 

  Sony gardening

For more than a decade, Sony Electronic volunteers have visited the Holley Center each spring to spruce up the grounds and plant cheerful flowers and shrubs. This year's crew of volunteers was headed by Sony senior VP  Paul Spitale and YCS Trustee Beth Barone.

 

 

children at PSEGChildren from Davis House were invited to visit PSEG headquarters, in Newark, by the PSEG Energy, Resource and Trade Department. The children donned workers safety gear, learned how to protect themselves from electrical accidents, and were introduced to the ways PSEG manages energy. 
Boys volunteer at car washAccess Self Storage and the YCS Kilbarchan (KB) residence recently partnered to raise money for Ramapo Bergen Animal Refuge by conducting a car wash. Four young men from KB washed about 30 cars over four hours. Several donors came with dogs and shared their adoption stories. The young men talked about their pets and the desire to one day adopt an animal from the shelter. Access was impressed by the young men's efforts and expressed an interest in partnering with YCS again.
chidren from Sawtelle Camden home
Children from our Sawtelle Home in Camden had lots of fun participating in the Autism Speaks Walk in Mt. Laurel, in May. 
Quiana is a pagaent winnerCongratulations to the NJ Miss Amazin' Beauty Pageant winner Quiana Vaughn. Quiana, a Sawtelle Home resident, was recognized for her poem on the meaning of beauty. The pageant, celebrates "the abilities of girls and women with disabilities." Please click here to read Quiana's poem.
NJ Special OlympicsCongratulations to all the young men from our KB residence who participated in the 2012 Spring Special Olympics Track and Field events. All the young men had a great time, while several athletes took 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in the 100 and 200 meter races. 
                  Grant News

The YCS Therapeutic Nurseries recently received a generous grant from the Turrell Fund to assist with operating costs for the East Orange and Secaucus nurseries.
 
The Orange Orphan Society and
Medco Health Solutions have awarded important grants for our Nurse Family Partnership program. This Newark-based program assists 100 first time pregnant woman and new moms who are living in at-risk environments.
YCS logo Our Mission:  

To partner with at-risk and special needs children, youth and young adults to build happier, healthier, more hopeful lives within families and communities.

 

YCS is one of New Jersey's leading private, non-profit, social services agencies dedicated to providing educational, in-home, residential and community based services to children with behavioral health issues and challenging behaviors. In 2010 YCS expanded its services to include in-home and residential care for individuals with developmental disabilities.

 

To learn how you can get involved, attend an event or make a donation, please visit www.ycs.org