Looking for volunteers!!

We are going to be starting open hours Monday through Friday, 3-5pm beginning January. This is a chance to be a mentor for the kids in the neighborhood who come to the Community Center to have fun. The children can study, do homework, play games, or just be social. If you can help during these hours, or for one hour a week, or one hour a month, we'd appreciate it. This is a great volunteer opportunity if you need hours for your school semester or if you want to help out in your community.

If you are interested you can sign yourself up by going to our google doc at:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AkcdG21uour0dHVKZGVCeWtFTmZaclFCSHh6Y3czTkE&hl=en&authkey=CMzEq6wM
(There are 2 sheets; first tab is for "contact info", the other tab is "calendar" for you to sign up for available days. Tabs are located at the bottom bar of the page. Please, don't forget to fill out both sheets)

If you have any questions contact Kim Cruz at 801-691-5338 or email sfccboulders@hotmail.com

Story KSL did on piano recital at Community Center

Gifted piano keeps on giving

December 15th, 2010 @ 9:55pm

By Amanda Butterfield

PROVO -- Several young pianists finished up their first piano recital in Utah County Wednesday night. It never would have happened without the donation of one woman -- Cindy Rogers. 

"I grew up taking lessons when I was young and played my whole life," Rogers said.

Cindy Rogers donated a piano to the children of South Franklin Community Center 

Divorced 15 years ago, Rogers had to provide for three children alone. Although she loved the piano, she never could afford to own one.

That is until one day when a piano showed up at her house.

"I was shocked!" Rogers said.

It was an upright Baldwin piano that, now, a whole new generation of musicians are learning to play on.

"It's fun playing the piano," said Sidney Nunez, one of the 10 or so youths who takes free piano lessons at the South Franklin Community Center in Provo.

In the past decade, Cindy's circumstances improved and she got another piano, but she couldn't bear to sell her old one, so she decided to pay it forward and donated it.

Sidney and her brother, David, have been taking lessons on it from BYU student Angela Gong, who is a volunteer teacher.

"Music has been important to me, so I was trying to find a way I could share that," Gong said.

Gong teaches about 10 children a week, sometimes more. She decided to hold a recital so her students could show their parents what they had learned.

"Me and my sister are playing 'Heart and Soul,'" David said.

Playing in a recital is something these students would never have been able to do if not for Roger's donation. Rogers is just glad others are enjoying her piano.

"Music just brings so much joy into people's lives," she said.

As for the whoever gave the piano to Rogers all those years ago, "I never found out," she said.

For video go to: http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=13673769

Sub for Santa Sponsors

With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it’s easy to get caught up in the stress of the season. Sometimes it’s easy to  worry more about what Christmas ISN’T than what it IS – encouraging peace on earth and good will toward men.

There are plenty of things that can be done to touch the lives of those around us. You can visit a nursing home and the residents there. You can also drop off a plate of cookies or a thoughtful card for a struggling neighbor.

 If you or someone you know is looking to make a financial contribution this holiday season, you can also become a sponsor for United Way of Utah County’s Sub for Santa program. About 280 families with approximately 700 kids still need sponsors. Sub for Santa not only helps provide children with Christmas presents, but it helps fosters financial stability through workshops where applicants learn about low-cost Christmas traditions, budgeting and other community resources that are available.

For more information about becoming a Sub for Santa sponsor, visit www.unitedwayuc.org/subforsanta or call 801-356-6300.  

Volunteer Opportunity for this Holiday Season

Hello volunteers! We have a fun and exciting volunteer opportunity for you. We are looking for 2-5 people to help watch children for 2 hours during a neighborhood leadership meeting this Saturday from 12-2. The children will range from ages 0-12. We have toys, games, and crafts to help you have a good time. This is a one-time event and a good way to help your community during this holiday season.

Also, lunch will be provided for you! The meeting is held at South Franklin Community Center in Provo, UT. The address is 750 S 650 W, the building is behind the leasing office. If you're interested send an email to sfccboulders@hotmail.com or call Kim at 801-691-5338.

Poll: What do YOU think is the best way to spread Christmas cheer?

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Fall has come and gone and now winter is sneaking up on us! But before the snow had a chance to settle on the ground, we welcomed the holidays with a wonderful Thanksgiving Day party.  The BYU Center for Service and Learning sponsored our event as part of their usual Friday Service Date Night and it was a success! ( Most everything that happens at the South Franklin Community Center is a success. Correction: Everything that happens at the South Franklin Community Center is a success, but some things are more successful than others J). We had fun craft and art projects, cookie decorating, a candy walk, and face painting all going on. Thank to you all the wonderful volunteers who came and made a difference- it was a blast and we all had fun! Check out their blog here for more fun pics and comments.

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 One of the craft projects was making a turkey using a plastic cup. So creative!

 As you can see, the community center was packed with volunteers and kids, all coming together to share what they were thankful for.

The event was not only fun but educational as well! There's nothing like a good book to start off the holiday season.

Soccer Tournament Recap

This weekend, I had the opportunity to go to some of the tournament games for the South Franklin Community Center Soccer Program.

 Though the youngest division (ages 5-7) didn’t actually compete in the tournament, they did have one last day of games. The kids were adorable! It was fun to watch them chase after the ball in little swarms. The kids would all pack together in a tangle of arms, legs and different colored jerseys to try and be the one to kick the ball in whatever direction they could. It looked like they all had a lot of fun and had such great sportsmanship!

You could tell the coaches were great with the kids and that they had a lot of fun as well.

I also watched the oldest division (12-15 years old) compete for the tournament title. Things got a little crazy when there was a tie between two teams in the playoffs. They actually ended up doing a penalty kick shoot-out of sorts. It was pretty intense!

The red team took the tournament for the older division. Though it was definitely cold, the weather stayed nice and I think everyone had a good time. I know I had a lot of fun watching the games!

By Whitney Condie, Public Relations Intern for United Way of Utah County

Time flies when you're playing soccer!

Can you believe it? This Saturday, November 13^th, is our last day of Fall season soccer for the South Franklin Program. Sad? Yes, but we are going to end with a bang!  The day will start off with the little ones (5-7 year olds) at 9a.m. showing off what they have learned this past season about technique, rules, and most important: teamwork! Starting at 10am we have our first tournament game for the 12-15 year olds.  Then at 1pm we start our tournament games for the 8-11 year olds.  What a day! Come and cheer on your team!

No plans on Friday??

Looking for a fun date night this Friday? BYU Center for Service and learning is hosting Service Date Night at the South Franklin Community Center! We are having a Thanksgiving Event and couples will be in charge of activities such as face painting, cookie decorating, and book readings.  To register (it’s free) click on this link. Help others and have a great time!

https://centerforservice.byu.edu/content/get-involved

See you there!!

Halloween Carnival

 Last Thursday we had a Trunk or Treat at the Community Center. We had tons of great events for the kids: cupcake walk, face painting, bag decorating, not to mention a parking lot full of scary cars to trick or treat to. All of this was possible through our amazing volunteers, Our Teams tutoring program, Community Action, and community members and children. We want to thank everyone for coming out and making this night such a success!

A wizard practicing magic from the back of his car for a night.

 Our very own cute forester who took time out from her ecological restoration to share some treats with the kids.

No, those are not ordinary Christmas trees, those are volunteers whose favorite holiday would appear to be Christmas.

If you're thinking that's a real person dressed as a scarecrow you'd be right! But she didn't move a muscle until you approached her.

Dora, Winnie, Pirate of the Caribbean, and Sacagawea dropped by for an appearance.

Cupcake Walk or Run: donated by the generous Sweet Tooth Fairy and Community Action.

Some of the teachers from the Community Center sharing treats and information with everyone. Laraine teaches crocheting and handed out cute Halloween necklaces with ghosts, pumpkins, and bats to the kids. She has quite a talent. Come and see for yourself.

Everyone had a blast and got enough candy to last them til Halloween Day.

Let's not forget about our little ones!

The best things come in small packages.

Soccer is spelled T-E-A-M!

Picture Time has been going down with the South Franklin Soccer Program! Here are some team pictures and candid shots taken by our wonderful photographer Matt Chambers! This season we have some excellent coaches, referees, parents, and kids participating, which makes every Saturday the best day of the week. Take a look!

 We have a few sponsors who have been with us since the beginning, and El MexSal and Mercado Latino are two of them. Thank you so much for your support!

 Sweet action shot! Taking one for the team.

 I thought this was about the most precious picture I have ever seen. I think they are brothers, and the one on the left is younger, just giving his older brother some soccer advice. Cute!

More pictures will be coming soon. Stay tuned.....

Eat for a cause

Come eat at the California Pizza Kitchen ANYTIME on NOVEMBER 1st to raise money for the South Franklin Community Center. Just click on the image to the right to print the flier or mention the "South Franklin Community Center Fundraiser" and 20% of what you spend will go toward the Community Center. 

The Community Center was started and is currently directed by members of the AmeriCorps VISTA program.  AmeriCorps is a federal program of full time volunteers committed to fighting poverty.  VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) members dedicate a year of full-time service to help develop communities across the nation.

Some programs currently in place at the Community Center are: tutoring, English class, Institute, Family Home Evening, playgroups, 12-step addiction recovery class, health class, Spanish class, kids fitness class, piano class, dance class, and book club.  Also associated with the Community Center is the South Franklin Soccer Program – a free soccer league for kids ages five to fifteen.

These groups and classes are the results of community collaborations and are mainly comprised of volunteers and donations.  However, there are things that we can not provide for that require us to get funding other ways. With the community center growing and more people getting involved, our needs are also growing.  We therefore ask if you would be able to support us in our goal to raise money for the Community Center, so that we can continue to supply the center and its classes and programs with the necessary materials.   

We hope that you will consider this opportunity to serve our neighbors. Please spread the word and/ or bring friends with you when you go to California Pizza Kitchen on Monday.

Check out our cute videos from our last Tiny Tunes class!

Check out our cute videos from our last Tiny Tunes class!

Tiny Tunes

Our Tiny Tunes class is back on our calendar for every Friday morning. This class is directed toward parents with small children who like to sing and learn. With fall upon us, the theme has been leaves changing colors, pumpkins, and scarecrows. The children have a blast learning different things like new songs, colors, numbers, and how to be a part of a group. 

One little, two little, three little leaves...

Four little, five little, six little leaves...

Seven little, eight little, nine little leaves...

We blow them all away. Whoosh!

Making a craft project.

Say cheese!

The 16th and the 23rd is picture day for the South Franklin Community Center Soccer League. We want to send a shout out to our sponsors who make this league possible. Thank you for making it possible for kids to be apart of the community.

 

 If you're attacking, you don't get as tired as when you're chasing.

Soccer is simple, but it is difficult to play simple.

 

 Our wonderful volunteer referees taking a break.

 Winning doesn't really matter as long as you win.

"Play us a song you're the Piano Man"...and Woman...and Children

This fall we have had TONS of new classes start up at the Community Center. Here are a few pictures from our new Piano class, taught by Angela and Devin. Both of our teachers have been playing piano since they were little, and are well-qualified and very talented! Each week community members come and learn the basics of piano, and we look forward to seeing a performance at the end of this year.

For those of you who don’t remember how the community center got the piano (and for those of you who do remember) here is the article that will refresh your memory of the touching story:

http://bit.ly/aLE47z

The piano has been put to very good use, and not only during the piano class. All the kids who come into the community center can’t help but play a little tune or pound on the keys when they see it not being played!

 

This is Devin.

 

This is Angela.

Angela played a fun game to start of the class. She would play a note on the piano, then whoever had the blind fold on had to try and play the same note. This kind of activity will help the students with pitch and key recognition.

We are so appreciative of all our volunteers and donors who make the community center classes and events possible!  Thank you Angela and Devin!

Walmart

Hey we've updated our Walmart Wish List, by clicking on the link to the right you can see our list to make a generous donation.

Thanks to all our wonderful sponsors and volunteers we are able to provide free classes to the neighborhood children and adults. We are so grateful for all the wonderful help we receive on a regular basis. Thank you and if you're considering making a donation please think of all the amazing people that would benefit from your assistance. All of the things on the Wish List will help us reach our goals by continuing to make the Community Center a safe and welcoming place.

Special thanks to Worldwide Books!

Last Thursday at tutoring in the Community Center there were enough volunteers for each child to pair up with and everyone was doing homework, reading or playing a game. We want to thank all our volunteers for making this possible. These kids are truly benefiting from mentors like you. We would like to express appreciation to our sponsor, Worldwide Books for providing our library collection for the Community Center. They have donated so many books in Spanish and English for the kids and families to enjoy. We thank you for making our library a success.

Spotlight Maria!

One of our volunteers has been putting in such great effort at tutoring with the kids that we decided to spotlight her and show her our appreciation. We want to recognize Maria for being a volunteer for South Franklin Community Center since it first started in January of 2009. The kids have been able to focus on their studies and have fun with her. We want to thank and acknowledge her for all her generosity to the community.


Here's some more pictures from tutoring last week: