The Fleetwood Area School District’s Nature Center Restoration project is not just focused on creating a beautiful outdoor space on school grounds. This student-led restoration of an outdoor learning environment will provide access to environmental education opportunities, connecting students to nature and their surrounding community.
The outdoor learning environment will serve as a classroom complete with picnic style tables, providing students with hands-on experiences to spark a lifelong interest in environmental stewardship. The project leaders plan to create signage to identify key educational aspects of the Nature Center including tree and animal species identification and watershed information. They aim to help native plants and birds reclaim portions of their habitat by building floating island structures and birdhouses.
During a recent visit, we were fortunate enough to witness not only a baby blue heron basking in the sun, but also the pride and excitement from the students who have worked so hard to get things started at the Nature Center. After extensively researching native plants, students selected species such as spatterdock, duck potato, and swamp milkweed to add to the land and water. It was truly inspiring to see the students channel their creativity and innovation into a project that will have such a positive impact on the community.
The goal of the project is to help students gain skills in leadership, teamwork, communication, problem solving, and project management. What makes this project particularly special is its student-led approach. The Fleetwood Area School District is committed to empowering these students in grades 5-12 by allowing them to lead the efforts.
“Whether it is a fifth-grade teacher demonstrating the water cycle for his/her class, or the AP Biology students visiting the pond to assess habitat health by chemically testing the quality of the pond water, it will be an outdoor classroom that will be used in a wide variety of ways,” Dr. Natalie Lytle, Director of Curriculum and Assessment at Fleetwood Area School District said about the impact the classroom will have.
This hands-on experience will also instill a sense of responsibility and ownership among students. They will witness firsthand the impact of their efforts, making the lessons learned in the classroom come alive in a real-world context.
Funding for this project came from the Teacher Mini-Grant Fund of Berks County Community Foundation, which provides grants up to $500 for Berks County K-12 school employees to support innovative classroom projects. Applications are now being accepted until December 1 for the 2024-2025 school year. For more information about the fund, please click here.
Here at the Community Foundation, we believe that every student deserves to participate in fun activities that also improve their lives. By making a grant to Muhlenberg School District’s Weightlifting Club, also referred to as the “Swole Club”, the foundation was able to provide funding to do just that.
The Weightlifting Club, in collaboration with the Aevidum Club, was started to provide students with access to a new sport, a positive school culture of sportsmanship, and healthy habits. Engaging in weightlifting provides more than just physical benefits. Students learn to set goals, persevere through challenges, and celebrate their progress individually and as a team. The Aevidum club helps students to adopt cultures of care and advocacy, encouraging all members to have their friends’ backs.
“We are very excited and grateful for these funds and look forward to supporting our students in our Aevidum Club and Weightlifting Club,” says Zachariah Milch M Ed., Licensed Behavior Specialist at Muhlenberg School District.
The grant specifically provided funding for lifting equipment, tournament fees, and culture-building trips.
By providing funds for weightlifting equipment, this grant lifts the weight off the shoulders of students who lack access due to financial constraints to weightlifting. The funding was made possible by the First United Church of Christ Mission Fund of Berks County Community Foundation. This fund supports organizations and causes that were important to the mission of the First United Church of Christ in Reading, PA. One of the church’s causes that was important to them was to support programs and initiatives that help children from Berks County participate in activities that their families would not otherwise be able to afford. To learn more about the First United Church of Christ Mission Fund what other causes are important to this fund, click here.
Berks Teens’ pregnancy prevention initiative, a program of Co-County Wellness Services, announced a significant decrease in teen birth rates in Berks County. Carolyn Bazik, Executive Director, recently shared the exciting news with funders in the community. This announcement is based on the newest data that has just been received from the Department of Health, from 2022.
A community health needs assessment done in 2012 clearly outlined the need to do something impactful. Berks Teens, formerly Berks Teens Matter, was formed in 2014 to reduce teen pregnancy by 40% by 2022. Modeled as a collective of private and public stakeholders and as an initiative of Co-County Wellness Services, the goal was to develop and implement a plan, programs, and practices to reduce teen pregnancy. Many community partners lent support to the initiative from its inception including Berks County Community Foundation, United Way, Wyomissing Foundation, The Kindness Coalition, and Senator Judy Schwank.
Since the program began in 2014, the teen birth rate has declined by 60.3% in the city of Reading and 56.5% in the county.
“There had never been any programs in our community aimed at primary teen pregnancy prevention,” said Bazik, “or programs that taught youth the importance of postponing pregnancy until they were emotionally and financially capable. But there were a lot of programs that assisted teens after the birth of their child.”
Berks Teens created a peer education group at Reading High School and a virtual group throughout the county. The Youth Ambassador program focuses on educating teen volunteers on things like consent, healthy relationships, birth control, and sexual health and follows the principles of comprehensive sex education. The Youth Ambassadors educate their peers and other youth throughout the community. They work with adolescents at programs like the Olivet Boys and Girls Club and create health campaigns at school.
Berks Teens also started a Health Resource Center, funded by Access Matters, and based in Reading High School. They also conduct educational training in the community on things like “Giving the Talk”, “Supporting LGBTQ Youth”, and “Being an Askable Adult”.
These numbers show that the investments that have been made and continue to be made are paying off! Through increased education and awareness, birth rates are impacted, and for the first time in 12 years, the county’s rate is better than that of the United States.
Carolyn Bazik said, “We knew when we began that the results would be slow in coming, but with continued efforts at raising awareness, the support of other community organizations, and the growing success of the Health Resource Center at the high school, we are making a difference.”
This initiative was funded in part by support from multiple funds, including Arrow International Scholarship Fund, Bill Woolworth Memorial Fund for Berks Teens, Community General Hospital Fund, Hawley and Myrtle Quier Fund, Home Health Care Foundation Fund, Kim and Kevin Murphy Fund, and the Power of the Purse Fund, all managed by Berks County Community Foundation. For more information on Berks Teens or Co-County Wellness Services, contact info@cocounty.org.
Over 100 students from the Berks County school districts came together on April 8th, 2024 at Muhlenberg High School for a mental health event. This inaugural event was created by the Youth Mental Health Ambassadors of Youth Volunteer Corps (YVC), along with students from Muhlenberg High School’s Avedium Club who saw the need in our community.
In the past decade, research has proven that psychological stress influences the physical body and can sometimes lead to death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the second leading cause of death among individuals between the ages of 10 and 24 is suicide. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that that one in seven 10 to 19-year-olds experience mental health conditions that are largely unrecognized and untreated.
The youth-driven and youth-led Building Unity in Our Community event took place on Monday, April 8th. Student participants received information on mental health from local therapist Paige Schoelkofp from As You Are Counseling Services and from a youth-led panel discussion. Coping skills stations were set up to focus on art therapy, music therapy, journaling, equine therapy, and more! Each station had a hands-on experience. Students were able to participate and ask questions throughout the day.
This program was funded by the Home Health Care Foundation Fund of the Berks County Community Foundation. The Home Health Care Foundation Fund provides grants to organizations and programs that support preventative healthcare, community health, health-related charity care, and/or support in recovering from illness or a disability at home. This fund is available to organizations and programs that serve Berks County and/or those counties that are contiguous to it. To learn more about the fund, please click here.
“Without the funding, I strongly feel that our students would have made the program successful because of how passionate they are,” Lindsay Sites, YVC Program Director at VOiCEup Berks said. “Because of the funding, we were able to have a bigger impact and a bigger reach.”
VOiCEup Berks is an official affiliate of YVC. VOiCEup Berks creates opportunities for people to volunteer, learn and lead in their communities. YVC is a team-based service-learning program for youth ages 11-18. One of the many goals of YVC is to inspire youth to a lifetime commitment to service.
“I wanted to be part of YVC because my goal is to reduce the negative stigma related to mental health. When I graduate and move on from high school, my goal is for the students that come after me to continue reducing the stigma,” Addison McKittrick from Exeter High School said.
To learn more about VOiCEup Berks and how you can get involved, please click here.
VOiCEup Berks has developed the Youth Mental Health Education Initiative, which addresses the need for accessible mental health resources for local youth while recognizing that young people have an easier time communicating with others their own age. VOiCEup will educate youth about mental health issues and the support systems available to them.
Fifteen student participants, also known as Youth Mental Health Ambassadors (YMHA), will work directly with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), which will teach them about mental health topics, resources for support, and suicide prevention efforts. Once the YMHAs complete these learning requirements, they will assist VOiCEup Berks staff. This project was funded by the Home Healthcare Foundation Fund.
VOiCEup Berks promotes individual and community growth by connecting different sectors of Berks County through volunteer opportunities. The organization hopes to reach thousands of youths and adults in our community with this initiative, which includes the following activities:
To address the need for youth education on suicide prevention, VOiCEup Berks will educate local youth through “Question, Persuade, Refer” (QPR) training, a professional form of suicide prevention training. Certified VOiCEup Berks staff will train students on properly identifying and addressing a suicide crisis. Upon completion of the training, students should be able to persuade and refer someone to get help effectively. Young Mental Health Ambassadors, students at Yocum Institute, students from the VOiCEup Berks advisory board, and students from local high schools will receive training from the staff of VOiCEup Berks.
The Yocum Institute will partner with VOiCEup to complete the “Suicide Prevention Through Art Collaboration” project. Yocum performers will bring a suicide awareness play called “Between Apt. 2B and the End Zone” to different high schools in Berks County. The primary goal of the play is to spark hope in the students watching while simultaneously reducing the stigma behind suicide.
To reach as many Berks County residents as possible, Youth Mental Health Ambassadors will work alongside the Muhlenberg Aevidum Club and a marketing professional to create a suicide prevention marketing campaign. This campaign will be youth-driven and focused on normalizing discussions and treatment related to mental health. Promotions will include social media campaigns, printed content, an awareness video, t-shirts, and billboard advertising.
To help parents handle mental health crises, there will be a workshop for parents to learn about the mental health needs of youth.
More information about the program can be found on the VOiCEup Berks website at www.voiceupberks.org.
The Home Healthcare Foundation Fund supports:
- Organizations and programs that help residents recover from illness or disability at home to prevent them from needing in-patient medical care
- Programs and activities that support preventative healthcare for residents and overall community health to reduce the need for in-patient medical care
- Organizations that provide health-related charity care to residents.
Applications are now being accepted until March 15. For more information about the fund and to apply, please click here.
Six-year-old Timothy begged his mother to let him take skating lessons after seeing one of the Reading Royals ice hockey games. Observing the players skate so quickly excited him. Timothy’s mother requested help paying for the skating lessons from the Royals Youth Hockey Fund of Berks County Community Foundation. Timothy started participating in the Royal’s Learn to Skate program not long after.
The Royals Youth Hockey Fund of Berks County Community Foundation was started in 2023 by the Reading Royals Hockey Club to provide financial support to youth who want to participate in hockey lessons, camps, or leagues.
“Hockey is a special kind of sport in which success depends on every single player pulling in the same direction and supporting one another,” says Dakota Procyk, Vice President of Operations at the Reading Royals Hockey Club. “This fund is a great opportunity to invest in the Berks County community and offers a chance for our local youth to get involved with hockey.”
Young people’s development and well-being are greatly impacted by youth sports. Their physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development is aided by them, and they provide a number of positive aspects, such as health and wellness, confidence, teamwork, and skill development.
Recipients of the fund explained how the fund made a difference and gave them a spark of hope.
“Receiving this grant has shown me we can still help each other. Cutting ice hockey out of our budget would have left a void in my son’s winter.”
“This fund helped allow my son to continue to play the game he loves so much while allowing me a little breathing room with inflation.”
Since the fund opened in July 2023, the Community Foundation has granted $12,535 to 18 children. The grants assisted with registration fees for several of the Royals’ youth programs, including Learn to Skate, Learn to Play, Youth League, and Selects Team programs.
Funding can cover registration fees and equipment. Applicants can request a Slapshot Starter Kit, which includes hockey skates, pads, and a stick. Applications are open year-round.
To learn more, click: Learn More
To give to the Royals Youth Hockey Fund, visit: bccf.org/fund
One of the ways we help to improve the quality of life for Berks County residents is by funding programs that help support education activities and the general health of the community which can include youth sports.
There are so many benefits to youth sports. Through sports, children learn a variety of skills that they can apply to life, such as leadership, teamwork, and discipline. Additionally, children are given the opportunity to practice a healthy activity while making friends at the same time.
Reading Youth Legion Baseball recognized the need for affordable sports in the Reading Area and created a summer baseball team for youths. To help cover operational costs, the 2022 Community General Hospital Healthcare Fund granted the program $6,000. The funding covered the costs of team registration and insurance, new uniforms, baseball equipment, and umpire salaries. The team played in the Senior Berks American Legion League for a total of eight weeks. These eight weeks provided Reading Youth with a baseball experience with a competitive atmosphere comparable to standard travel baseball.
The 2022 Community General Hospital Healthcare Fund supports a variety of causes, all of which benefit the general health of the Berks County community. To learn more about this fund, visit https://bccf.org/funds/community-general-hospital-healthcare-fund/
