Youth Community Development Team Committee Report

The holidays are a time for celebrating our friends and family, what we value in our lives and to renew our faith in the good spirit of the people in the community we serve.  As students gathered for the monthly Youth Community Development Team session in the conference room at the Harrisburg Regional Chamber of Commerce, their passion for change demonstrated the future for our community is strong. 

The learning experience launched with students signing personal invitations to Rotarians to attend the January session to learn about the project identified and chosen by the class to help disadvantaged students learn how to get into college.  It will be a presentation that will inspire and every Rotarian should mark their calendar for the January 13^th event.  From the personal story shared by Peggy Grove as she presented the Rotary scholarship opportunity, it was clear to all attending - students and volunteers alike, that extending a hand to students with need can have tremendous impact on the opportunity to succeed.  One student commented that; "It is people like the lady who spoke this morning, who overcame hardship, completed college, and continues to help her family that is why this project is important."

Rotarian, Fred Hartman shared information with the students on the Rotary Leadership Conference, encouraging the Juniors (11^th grade) to take advantage of the regional Rotary leadership conference experience at Messiah College during the summer of 2009.  The presentation was a great lead in to the discussion lead by Rotarian, Jeannette Archer-Simons on "Beginning with the End in Mind" from the text for the YCTD class, "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens" by Sean Covey.  Students began by sharing their vision for their personal growth by identifying where they will be at age twenty-five (25).  From completing medical education and launching their own dental office to being a CEO of their own company, their goals began with success in school and college programs to provide the skills they need to be good business and community citizens.  Some included Rotary in their plans for future involvement as they expressed admiration for the generosity of members and the commitment to service.  Students also recognized the benefits of creating networks for their future success.  From participation in leadership development programs like YCDT and Leadership Harrisburg, to social networking to broaden the base of contacts beyond their local community, the students recognized the ability to connect for community good as well as business success as a vital part of the "relationship bank" as outlined in the text.

Una Martone, President of Leadership Harrisburg, built on the foundation of planning to achieve goals and the conversation on networking for change with her presentation on preparing for a philanthropic presentation.  The three young leader teams developed strategies for telling the story of the Youth Community Development Team, sharing the critical facts facing students who do not have access to advanced education and the impact on the community, and developing a compelling request to support this critical student driven project - to create opportunity for students who may not believe college is possible.  With the help of Millie Ortiz from PHEAA the students learned more about the case for college and received information on how to access financial assistance to make college possible. 

As the students wrapped up their preparation for team presentations in January, the group shared their initial plans and helped each team through feedback.  Each team segment demonstrated their passion for helping others to help themselves through education.  When asked if it was difficult to ask people to support a project, the students replied, "No", as they had met Rotarians at the lunch meeting and "they are generous and kind people."  The opportunity to make a philanthropic presentation for a project is a great learning experience for these young leaders as they have progressed during the last four months from a mix of individuals who come from varied schools and neighborhoods to a class committed to funding a project that will provide resources for a community organization to take the next step - help students like them succeed.  They have connected the leadership and team effort with new skills in making a proposal for change to philanthropic and social impact. Imagine the affect of this Rotary program on their future as philanthropic, engaged community citizens.

The next class will be held on January 13, 2008 from 11:00AM to 1:00PM in the conference room at the Harrisburg Regional Chamber of Commerce.  Please plan to join the young leaders for information and inspiration on their leadership project.  For more information about how you can be involved or if you are interested in the funding needs for their project, please contact Karen Snider, Chair at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .