Newburgh On the Rise: Job-training program shows stimulus at work

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Job-training program shows stimulus at work

CITY OF NEWBURGH — Le'Metrius Armwood would go to the library and start filling out job applications. ShopRite. Rite Aid. Dunkin' Donuts.
He can't remember all the places now. It doesn't really matter, because none of them was going to hire a 21-year-old with unreliable transportation.
Armwood did finally land a job. He was one of the 532 young men and women in Orange County hired for a six-week work program. The workers, ages 14 to 24, labored for minimum wage at 79 sites throughout the county.
The county's Employment and Training Administration hired more than 300 participants last summer and was able to increase that number by more than 200 this summer, thanks to federal funding through the stimulus bill.
Armwood worked in Newburgh as part of a team of 38. Together, team members put together a project they plan to unveil Sunday at Downing Park.
It's uniquely Newburgh: The workers have created memorials to the dead relatives of city residents. They went door-to-door registering people who wanted to remember a loved one.
Some of the workers, such as Armwood, filmed interviews with people about their relatives for a 20-minute video they'll show at the park. Other workers began building boxes they'll fit around trees. Names of the dead will be stenciled on the sides.
When the workers weren't toiling on their project, they headed to Best Resource Center on Grand Street for coaching in a variety of job skills.
Rep. Maurice Hinchey, County Executive Ed Diana and Newburgh Mayor Nick Valentine gathered Wednesday at Best Resources to praise the young workers during a news conference.
"You're young, you're vigorous, you're healthy, you're energetic and you're smart," Hinchey, D-Hurley, told them. Hinchey voted for the stimulus bill and called the program "tangible proof" of the impact the bill has had on communities.
Newburgh on the Rise, a summer youth employment program, will host a community cookout and memorial to the dead relatives of city residents from 3 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Downing Park.
dmurphy@th-record.com

No comments:

Post a Comment

A Little Something About Newburgh On The Rise

The youth of Newburgh on the Rise will be graduating from their 12 week summer youth employment program on September 30TH, 2009. On July 13TH 2009 48 youth were given the opportunity to work paid jobs for 6 weeks under the Department of Human Service’s youth bureau for the City of Newburgh. 48 youth ages 19-24 were given hands on training, in construction, filming/ photography, event planning and Urban Landscaping, while also receiving professional development skills training from Best Resources. Throughout the 6 weeks the youth assisted in the greening of several city owned properties while working closely with The Department of Public Works, they built and designed their own gardens while in partnership with professional arborists, volunteers from the tree commission and staff at Downing park. The youth also engaged themselves in their own community project called The Block Building Movement, in which they dedicated 5 hand pieced raised tree boxes to the community with over 200 names of people who passed burnt into the wood. Each name was registered in person as the youth Ambassadors went door to door, than passed on the names to their peers who burnt in every name by hand. This successful 6 week program was celebrated and presented to the public on August 16TH where well over 100 people showed up to thank the youth for their efforts in the community and to watch a draft of their film describing the whole process. On August 24TH, 2009 because of the Newburgh On The Rise’s success 18 of the 48 youth ambassadors were extended for another 5 weeks by Orange County E.T.A. Over the past 5 weeks not only have the youth exceeded the expectations of community partners but they have also exceeded their own. In only 25 days with less then 20 Youth Ambassadors, Newburgh on The Rise has been able to assist in the metamorphic change towards a greener Newburgh. The first couple of weeks on the job the youth ambassadors started to tear down walls literally and figuratively as they teamed up with the City of Newburgh Police to renovate the old court house and police station, helping to build a stronger bond between the police and the community. Over the following weeks the youth finished the final editing of their 25 minute short film, built their own miniature raised bed gardens and maintained over 40 trees some of which they planted themselves. They also received training in Blogging, Urban Farming, Green Construction & Building, Permaculture, Horticulture, Culinary from the Culinary Institute and local restaurants all while still attending their professional development courses at Best Resources. All of their hard work will be celebrated at 4:00PM on September the 30TH at Newburgh’s Recreation Center. The Celebration will begin with a bus tour of all of their achievements around the City of Newburgh and will continue on at the recreation center, where their film and blog will be shown. Please come out and celebrate with our youth ambassadors and show them you care.