Newspapers / Philanthropy Journal of North … / Sept. 1, 1995, edition 1 / Page 8
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Volunteers 8 Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina Slam-dunk for jobs Midni^t basketball heading for Trian^e t,. YMCAs in the Triangle plan to run an evening program designed to help young men in the inner-city get on track to find jobs. By Todd Cohen Durham The Triangle is on track to get a midni^t basketball league that ahns to keep young men off the streets at night and offer them a path to a good job. Modeled on a Milwaukee league that in its first year reduced inner- city crime by 30 percent, the Triangle league would begin in January with 12 teams - five each in Durham and Ralei^ and two in Chapel Hill. To start up the league, organizers are seeking a three-year federal grant of $180,000, as well as corporate sponsors for individual teams. The league has been designed by the Urban Enerprise Corps at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and will be run through YMCAs in the three cities. “It is designed to mend the social fabric of the community and provide alternatives to idleness in the inner- city,” says Jim Johnson, director of the Urban Enterprise Corps at UNC- CH’s Kenan-Flagler Business Schooi. The midnight ieague will build on the experience of, and he in addition to, a seven-year oid weekend ieague, known as “Night Flight,” that has been run at half-a-dozen sites by the Durham Parks and Recreation Department. That program is offered to a younger age group - 15 to 21 years old - and is less formal than the new midni^t league. “We’re hoping that the Trian^e midni^t basketball will provide the next level for the Ni^t FUght partic ipants,” says Ben Weber, executive director of the Durham YMCA. “It would allow the organization to develop a broader relationship with those participants.” In addition to offering basketball games, the midnight league will include corporate volunteers who will be recruited to work as mentors with young men who participate in designed to mend the social fabric of the community and pro vide alternatives to idle ness in the inner-city. Jim Johnson Urban Enterprise Corps UNC-CH the league, typically ages 18 to 25 years old. They attend 30-mmute “personal responsibility” sessions with their mentors after each game. Four games of one hour each typ ically are played each evening from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Initially, the league will be run Saturday nights only, and eventually expand to other ni^ts. The league also will have a pro gram to instill the entrepreneurial spirit in teenagers. All concessions at games will he owned and operated by high school students. As the league matures, that business will be expanded to include such items as caps and memorabiUa. Johnson was a member of a research team that eval uated the impact of the Milwaukee league. In addi tion to contributing to the 30 percent drop in the crime rate in the target neighborhoods, the research team found, the league “created a safe haven in which the partici pants and the fans could engage in positive social activities, channeled the energy of gang members in a positive direction, and signifi cantly improved the educational and career aspirations of program par ticipants,” according to a report by the research team. The Milwaukee program is one of several created in inner-city nei^- horhoods throughout the United States starting in the 1980s. The Milwaukee league was set up with an investment of $70,000, which Johnson says is roughly the cost of maintaining two inner-city minority mates in prison for one year. In Durham, the annual cost of sending one youngster to a training school is $42,000 to $47,000. In 1993 and 1994, 69 Durham County juve niles were sent to a training school for one year - at a total cost of near ly $3 million. “One does not have to be an investment banker to realize that programs iike the midni^t basket ball league will generate a much hi^er return in terms of human cap ital development than any or all of the punitive and paterna^stic poli cies that currently garner so much political and media attention,” the research team says in its report. For information, call Weber of the Durham YMCA at (919) 493-4502. Big-name supporter Gov. Jim Hunt was among the volunteers who made pitches for donations for public radio station WUNC-FM during its recent on-air fund drive in the Triangle. September 1995 Laying the groundwork Women’s fund gears up for fundraising push Volunteer leaders of The Women’s Fund of North Carolina attribute a slow fundraising start to a lack of awareness about the need for an endowment fund for pro grams for women and girls. By Barbara Solow Volunteer supporters of The Women’s Fund of North Carolina say they are not discouraged by the grad ual pace of donations from corpora tions, foundations and individuals. The fund, which was estabhshed in October 1993 as a permanent endowment of the North Carolina Community Foundation, has raised only about $40,000 of its $250,000 fundraising goal. “It’s moving slower than we had hoped but it is moving,” says Lena Epps Brooker, president of the fund’s advisory board and diversity management director at The Women’s Center in Raleigh. “This is a new concept, not just here in North Carolina but nationally As a result, we are having to do a lot of education about why a fund iike this is important.” Although philanthropic giving to programs for women and girls has increased during the past two decades, it remains a small piece of the pie - only about 5.3 percent of overall corporate and foundation giv ing, according to Women and Philanthropy, a national coalition that works to increase giving to women’s issues. Surveys by the oiganization show many foundations and corporate fun- Lena Epps Brooker ders prefer to support “universal” programs that serve a general popu lation, rather than those specifically aimed at women and girls. Despite such attitudes, Brooker says once North Carolina donors hear about the existence of The Women’s Fund, they are excited about supporting it. “A lot of women and men are still not aware of how little goes to women and girls,” she says. “When we start sharing with them some of the statis tics about women in this state, it’s a real eye-opener.” Activities supported by the fund in its first two years of operation includ ed a six-month series ol pro grams on women’s heaith issues broad cast on North Carolina Public Teievision; an eight-week modei financial management program designed for members of the Pines of Caroiina Girl Scout Council, and a conference on family-friendly policies in the work- piace sponsored by N.C. Equity in Ralei^. Brooker says health, education and economic empowerment will con tinue to be a special focus of the fund. Founding members include Elizabeth Fentress, executive direc tor of the Raleigh-based North Caroiina Community Foundation; Joyce Fitzpatrick, president of the Raleigh communications firm Rudder-Finn; and Sarah Belk Gambrell of Charlotte, a principal of the Belk group of stores. Newly-appointed volunteer advi sory board members are Margaret Aimond and Sharyn Elder of Charlotte; Jeri Fitzgerald Board of Laurlnburg Linda MeCrudden of Raleigh; and Warrene Williams of Mheville. The fund’s first annual luncheon featured a speech by honorary Chairwoman Elizabeth Dole, a SaUsbury native and former U.S. transportation secretary On Oct. 17, the fund will host a luncheon with New York Times columnist Jane Brody in Charlotte. Organizers of the fund say future outreach efforts will center on attracting volunteers, donors and community leaders who can help encourage more philan thropy among women. “When you stop to think about it, so much of the voluntarism in our communities is done by women - espe cially fundraising - but we’ve never really worked on any thing that would benefit us directly” Brooker says. “The bottom line is it’s taken us longer than we’d hoped to make the connection to women we want to reach in the community But we are reaching them and they are very excited about what we’re doing.” For details on the Charlotte lun cheon, call Elder at (704) 333-6586. For information about The Women’s Fund, call Esther Hall at the North Carolina Community Foundation in Ralei^ at (919) 781-2797. Elizabeth Fentress Leading the way En^sh majors rank as volunteer interns The University of North Carolina at Charlotte places about 70 student interns a year in mostly-volunteer positions related to their studies. Surprising, the division that places the most students in internships is the En^sh department, school officials report. UNC-Charlotte places En^h interns at companies such as IBM, Duke Power and WSOC-TV, as well as nonprofits such as CaroUnas Medical Center, Spirit Square and the Leukemia Society Student interns receive academic credit for the training they receive under faculty supervision. Volunteer interns must maintain a grade-point average of 2.5 or better. Why is En^h such a popular subject for internships? Because in the age of advanced communications technol ogy, the ability to write and communicate is a sou^t-after skill, says Deborah Bosley, UNC-Charlotte’s advisor for En^sh internships. Criminal justice is a close second to En^h, in terms of internships and, depending on the semester, sometimes places more interns. Mary Semans receives av/ard Durham civic leader Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans was the only North Carolinian to receive a 1995 Distinguished Service Award from the National Governors Association. Semans, a long-time sup porter of the arts, received the award on July 31 at a ceremony in Burlington, Vt. Hopeline needs crisis volunteers Hopeline in Wake County needs volunteers to staff its 24-hour crisis hotline. The hotline, started in 1970, receives more than 50 calls a day, and the number is growing as the region con tinues to grow. Training for volunteers will begin Sept. 12. Call (919) 231-7991. Peace Booth needs State Fair volunteers The Peace Booth at the State Fair needs volunteers for its 1995 educational dis play. For more than 40 years, the Peace Booth has operated at the fair as part of a statewide coalition of churches, individuals and peace activists. The fair runs Oct. 13- 22. Call Patrick O'Neil at (919) 772-5777. Volunteers needed to strengthen families SAFEchild, the Raleigh child abuse prevention agency, needs volunteers for several programs: a nurturing class for 4-to-l 2-year olds; a story-sharing program for family literacy; and a wel come-baby program that pairs first-time mothers with mentors. SAFEchild provides training for all volunteers. Call (919) 231-5800. Charlotte agency prepares for winter Crisis Assistance Ministry in Charlotte will hold informa tion sessions for prospective volunteers Sept. 5 and Sept. 20. The agency needs inter viewers to work one-on-one with families in financial cri sis. It also is looking for help processing and distrib uting donated clothing and furniture. To register, call Anne Davant at (704) 371 - 3001, ext. 114. Camp to help griev ing kids Triangle Hospice and Hospice of Wake County are joining forces to present Camp ReLeaf, a bereave ment support camp for chil dren, on Sept. 29 and 30. For information about vol unteering for the camp or sending or referring a child, call Faith Barnes at (919) 490-8480.
Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.)
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Sept. 1, 1995, edition 1
8
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