Day of Caring

United Way Day of Caring is for local businesses and organizations to provide service to their community. Yesterday was Day of Caring in Utah County and over 1200 volunteers came to 31 project sites to help with landscaping, painting, repairing, and cleaning.

South Franklin Community Center was one of the sites that received help from over 25 volunteers to help organize and categorize the library catalog. We now have about 4,000 books sorted and labeled into 17 different genres.  This system will improve the kids experience in our library. They can now come in and find a book within seconds.

Thanks to all those who came and helped from Brigham Young University's MPA program and Utah Community Credit Union. We couldn't have done it without you! 

Day Camp: Museum of Peoples and Cultures

With Day Camp coming to a close at the end of this week, the campers had time for one final field trip, this time to the Museum of Peoples and Cultures at BYU.  The museum started as part of BYU’s Department of Archaeology in the 1960s, becoming an official museum in 1981.

Today’s visit began with a lecture by one of the museum staff members about the Fremont people who lived in this part of Utah more than a thousand years ago.  Campers were shown various artifacts, and given a demonstration on telling a story based on archaeological evidence.  After the demonstration, the campers had a chance to put what they had learned to the test.

Outside the museum is a sand pit with buried artifacts.  After a brief safety lecture and some instruction, the campers were let loose to see what they could find.

Once they had discovered their arrowhead and beads, the campers made necklaces from their discoveries.

Thanks to the Museum of Peoples and Cultures staff for a fun and educational trip.  To learn more about the museum, visit their web site.  As always, thanks to Utah Valley Paratransit and our volunteers, without whom these trips would not be possible.

Photos by Mark Hartman

Day Camp: Home Depot Kids' Workshop

Day Camp isn’t just about having fun, it’s also about learning.  Today the campers did both when the Home Depot Kids’ Workshop came to South Franklin.  Kids’ Workshop is a program that teaches kids about tool safety and simple skills to “instill a sense of accomplishment.”  The campers at South Franklin were fortunate to have Danny from the Home Depot come to camp and bring the Kids’ Workshop program with him.

Each camper was given a kid-sized orange Home Depot apron and a small workshop project kit.  Campers could choose to build either a helicopter or a sailboat.  After some safety instructions and a quick reminder to follow the directions included in each kit, the campers got to work.

We're grateful to Danny and the Kids’ Workshop program for taking the time to teach the campers while having fun at the same time.  For more information on the Kids’ Workshop program, visit their web site.

We're also grateful to our volunteers.  We had a great volunteer turnout today, which enabled the campers to receive the personal attention they needed while working on their projects.  It's not too late to volunteer.  Visit our Google Doc signup page for more information!

For more photos from the Home Depot's Kids' Workshop, visit our Facebook page.

Photos by Mark Hartman

Day Camp: Bean Life Science Museum

The fun at Day Camp continued Tuesday with the first field trip of the year.  Eager campers boarded United Way buses for the short trip to the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum on the campus of Brigham Young University.  According to the museum’s web site, the Bean Museum opened to the public in 1978 and is accredited by the American Association of Museums, a distinguished honor.  In addition to collections of plants and animals made available for researchers, the museum has many public exhibits and educational programs.

The Day Camp group was treated to the Ecosystems Show, a live animal show where students learn about different ecosystems and how animals adapt to their environments.  Our show was presented by Kira, an educator at the museum.  Throughout her presentation, she answered campers’ questions and did a great job of keeping them engaged in the program.

The highlight of the program was the live animal portion.  Campers got to see a frog and touch a turtle and a snake.  Some campers were more enthusiastic than others. 

After the presentation, campers were encouraged to wander around the museum and look at the exhibits.  Both campers and volunteers enjoyed themselves.

Thanks to Kira and the Bean Museum for a wonderful field trip!  For more information on the museum, visit their web site.  

Find more photos from our trip to the Bean Museum on our Facebook page.

Photos by Mark Hartman

Day Camp: Living Legends

Week 2 of Day Camp started Monday when campers met with some special visitors as members of BYU’s Living Legends came to perform for a combined day camp session.  Living Legends is a performing arts group from the School of Music at BYU which celebrates the music and dance traditions of Native Americans, Latin Americans, and the peoples of the islands of the South Pacific.  Each individual performance represented a different native people or location, including the Hoop Dance from New Mexico and another dance from Tahiti.  After the performers completed their program, there was a short Question & Answer session with the campers. 

Thanks to Jared, Amber, and Sam from Living Legends for performing for Day Camp, and special thanks to our volunteers for helping out.  It's not too late to volunteer! Visit our Google Doc signup sheet for more information.

Photos by Mark Hartman