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News from the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative | June 3, 2014 |
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Mayor Murray Introduces Resolution to U.S. Conference of Mayors
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray didn't let any grass grow under his feet after joining the U.S. Conference of Mayors earlier this year. On May 23rd he introduced a resolution to the group expressing a commitment to designating the decade of 2015-2025 as "an era of community focus on building an Early Learning Nation."
According to the mayor's press release:
Scientific research clearly shows positive parenting and caregiving in early childhood, starting at birth, is a key contributor to lifelong health and productivity and there is compelling evidence that the foundation for health or disease is established in early childhood - especially between birth and three years of age. High-quality early learning in these critical years has been proven to reduce placements in special education, reduce grade retention, boost graduation rates, decrease teen pregnancy rates, reduce violent crime, juvenile delinquency and incarceration, and increases the odds of long-term employment.
Fifteen mayors from around the country co-sponsored the resolution, which will be considered at the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting in Dallas, Texas from June 20-23.
Read the resolution here.
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Say That Out Loud
On May 27, Hard Knock Radio, a daily talk show for the Hip Hop generation on KBCS 91.3, aired "Say That Out Loud," a collaborative community project of SYVPI and Therapeutic Health Services. The purpose of the project, according to Sakara Remmu, Assistant Network Coordinator for SYVPI's Central Network, was to teach youth how to communicate their feelings, their opinions, their concerns, and their selves.
Hear for yourself just how well they did. Follow this link to the short audio recordings available on the SYVPI website.
Thank you to www.kbcs.fm for airing the show as well as for providing us with a copy.
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The Gathering
On Saturday, May 31, more than 130 community members and volunteers participated in an afternoon of dialogue, storytelling, interactive art gallery viewing and brainstorming. The event, called The Gathering, marked a benchmark in SYVPI's Byrne grant-funded project known as Rainier Beach: a Beautiful Safe Place for Youth. It also showcased SYVPI's partnership with the United Story Project's Breaking the Pane initiative. Personal stories and perspectives from Rainier Beach community members were captured by the Breaking the Pane project through video, photographs, community member quotes and artistic "window panes" with words and drawings expressing people's experiences of the neighborhood.
Mayor Ed Murray, perused the interactive art exhibit and then opened the event with welcoming remarks. He expressed his support of the effort to bring together community, police and other City agencies to increase safety and change negative perceptions about the neighborhood and noted that "Hope" was a consistent theme throughout The Gathering. In addition to powerful youth performances, Vietnamese dance and storytelling, Rainier Beach: A Beautiful Safe Place for Youth volunteers received award certificates recognizing their dedication and hard work on the project.
Event participants also brainstormed ideas for a 21-day challenge for a public positive messaging campaign for Rainier Beach to support SYVPI's and the community's efforts to reduce youth crime at local hot spots. The winning idea is to recruit neighborhood "greeters" to welcome passersby to the different hot spots with coffee, smiles and information about the neighborhood. Interested volunteers are invited to the first planning meeting for this activity on June 4 from 6-7 PM at the Rainier Beach Community Center. One thing is certain, the spirit
 | Halimo Maie, Community Storyteller |
of the Gathering will live on long after the 21-day challenge!
"Here in Rainier Beach High School...I made long lasting friends after leaving all my friends in Kenya and Minnesota. I found teachers who care so much about their students that they would come before school and stay late after school to make sure that their students understood their courses; teachers who would not allow their students to fail...Now I am back giving back to this community that nurtured me."--Halimo Maie
Learn more about the Rainier Beach: A Beautiful Safe Place for Youth at: http://safeplaceforyouth.weebly.com/

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SYVPI and the Community Lose Outstanding Advocate Terri Kimball
SYVPI was saddened to learn that Terri Kimball, a Seattle champion for youth and children, died on May 10 from cancer. Terri, who led the Center for Children and Youth Justice's Project Respect initiative, helped to launch one of the nation's first-ever statewide protocols to ensure that law enforcement, the courts, and service providers treat young people who are forced into prostitution as victims instead of criminals.
Terri was also responsible for inviting SYVPI to participate in the Domestic Violence Prevention Council and dedicated a year of the committee's work to exploring the intersection between youth violence and domestic violence.
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and the Seattle City Council acknowledged the community's loss by proclaiming June 1 as Terri Kimball Appreciation Day.
If you were not fortunate enough to have known Terri, you can learn more about her in the following articles from the Seattle Times: Terri Kimball, a soldier in war on domestic abuse, sex trade, dies and Editorial: Terri Kimball was a ceaseless advocate for victimized youth
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Community Matching Grants Strengthen Grassroots Support
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Safe Youth, Safe Community is a newsletter published by the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative. Our mission is to prevent and reduce youth violence, which has disproportionately affected communities of color in Seattle, through coordinated community mobilization to identify youth at risk of perpetuating or being a victim of violence and connect them with needed support in reaching their full potential. For more information, please visit our website www.safeyouthseattle.org.
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