NJ Youth Corps and Jersey Explorer Children's Museum @ Orange, NJ YWCA

Saturday August 23rd we were grateful to be a part of the Orange, NJ YWCA blood drive. The drive featured different local vendors as well as NJ Youth Corps and Jersey Explorer Children's Museum on hand to display free books for youth of all ages. We look forward to continued growth and partnership with the newly renovated YWCA of Essex and West Hudson NJ.

JECM/YC Staff Johan ready to give out books and give info on the Jersey Explorer.

The YWCA of Essex and West Hudson NJ hosted a blood drive which will help hundreds of people who need blood.

NJ Youth Corps visit Watchung Reservation and Barnes & Noble

Friday, August 22nd, marked the date of an interesting road trip that started at the historic Watchung Reservation in New Jersey and ended at a Route 22 Barnes & Noble book store. It was a journey that took our city-wise students and staff into a wilderness exploration into nature where we saw vintage artifacts and luxuriant plants. We also did some serious climbing and hiking. We had a glorious time and are looking forward to a return trip soon. Here are some Youth Corps student/staff reactions to our day.

Adam: My trip was extremely fun, I enjoyed every minute of it. I would definitely go back again. I learned nature has extraordinary things about it.

Irene: My favorite part about the trip was everything! I learned a lot about the outdoors. I would go again, I enjoyed myself. 

Stephanie: It was fun! I liked going through the "Ghost Town", and I liked the rock climbing. I liked the teamwork and how we all came together and worked together.

ABOUT WATCHUNG RESERVATION:

Watchung Reservation in Union County is a 2,000-acre wooded tract where animal and plant life are protected.  Highlights of the park include Surprise Lake, the Deserted Village of Feltvile/Glenside Park, the Trailside Nature and Science Center, Seeley's Pond and the Watchung Stables.  Opened in 1941, The Trailside Museum was New Jersey's first nature museum. Although I-78 traverses its northwestern flank, most of the reservation remains in a natural, wild state, and sound barriers muffle the road noise.

  

ABOUT BARNES & NOBLE:

Barnes & Noble, Inc. is a Fortune 500 company, the largest retail bookseller in the United States, and the leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products in the country. The company operates 661 retail stores (as of May 3, 2014) in all 50 U.S. States in addition to 700 college bookstores that serve more than 5 million students and faculty members across the country. Barnes & Noble also operates BN.com

107.5 WBLS-FM NJ Youth Corps Promo

We here at NJ Youth Corps would like to thank Ms. Ann Tripp, News Director at 107.5 WBLS-FM & 1190 WLIB-AM, for interviewing Crew Leader Doug Bailey, in regards to information on the NJ Youth Corps Program and current enrollment opportunities for young people.

This promo ran numerous times during the popular top-rated "Steve Harvey Morning Show" which is on air from 6:00AM until 10:00AM Monday through Friday via terrestrial radio as well as the internet live stream on WBLS.com

We appreciate Emmis Communications and their commitment to spotlighting community efforts right here in Jersey City and look forward to future initiatives and collaborations. Check out the audio below.

First Lady Mary Pat Christie recognizes Abby Daly, Founder & Executive Director of Bridge of Books, as a New Jersey Hero live @ The Jersey Explorer Children's Museum

The Jersey Explorer Children's Museum in conjunction with NJ Youth Corps were honored to host NJ First Lady Mary Pat Christie in her recognition of Bridge of Books founder and executive director Abby Daly as an official recipient of the "NJ Heroes" award. Mary Pat Christie, wife of NJ Governor Chris Christie, started the NJ Heroes Program to "recognize, celebrate, and promote the Heroes of New Jersey who inspire fellow New Jerseyans to give back to their community."

Here is the First Lady's official statement on the wonderful acknowledgment of Abby Daly:

Today I took a trip to the Jersey Explorer Children’s Museum in East Orange to honor Abby Daly as my 4th NJ Hero of 2014.  Abby’s non-profit foundation, Bridge of Books, provides an ongoing source of books to underprivileged and at-risk children throughout New Jersey in order to support literacy skills and to encourage a love of reading.  The organization’s name comes from the belief that a book, like a bridge, can take a child to new places.  Abby, who has always been involved in community service, saw an overwhelming need for books in many areas of our state.  As something many of us take for granted, she wanted to find a way to be able to provide for those children who may not even own a single book.  Through donations and book drives, Bridge of Books has been able to facilitate the distribution of over 425,000 books since its launch in 2003.  Bridge of Books also partners with the New Jersey Youth Corps, who helps with the distribution of the books.  Today, the Youth Corps set up a “Summer Book Blast Book Fair” for the children of East Orange inside the museum, as well as a tour where they were able to explore the different interactive exhibits.  The children were ecstatic to have such a great day planned for them!  Bridge of Books brought over 2,400 books for these children to choose from, take home, and call their own.  The looks on the children’s faces as they were holding onto their brand new books was priceless.  It was great to be at the Children’s Museum today and meet so many inspiring people involved with the Bridge of Books Foundation.  Abby presented me with a beautiful frame that read “Books have the Power to Change Lives” – a philosophy that I find to be so important and true.  Abby truly demonstrates what it means to be a New Jersey Hero. 

SOURCE: http://newjerseyheroes.org/index/2014/07/abby-daly-the-bridge-of-books-foundation/

The Jersey Explorer Children's Museum was elated to have Mary Pat Christie in our presence and we are so proud of Abby Daly and her continued commitment to literacy. Every guest that visits the JECM, can take home free books due to our longtime partnership with the Bridge of Books Foundation. We truly appreciate them as do the families and students who frequent our museum. 

FOR MORE INFO ON ABBY DALY AND THE BRIDGE OF BOOKS FOUNDATION PLEASE VISIT: http://www.bridgeofbooksfoundation.org/

NJ Youth Corps June 2014 Graduation

Here at NJ Youth Corps, we are very proud of our student graduates from the 2013/2014 semesters. We had a small graduation ceremony in June of this year to commemorate our students success in the program. They worked diligently to complete and pass their academic testing, in addition to completing 150 community service hours. They are focused and eager on starting the next phase of their young lives which includes part/full-time employment and/or admission into Hudson County Community College.

Jersey City Youth Corps Program live on Quest Community Vibrations Radio @ Seton Hall University.

The Jersey City Youth Corps were recently invited to speak on a live radio program which took place at Seton Hall University on 89.5 WSOU FM, home of Quest Community Vibrations Radio. This half hour Saturday radio show is spearheaded by Mr. Richard Bey and young emerging correspondents and talent. Ryan, one of our student's from the Youth Corps program and current staff member at the Jersey Explorer Children's Museum, spoke about his experiences studying and working thus far on air. We also asked Ryan after the show, how he felt about representing for Youth Corps over the airwaves. 

 "Being on the radio show was very exciting for me, it was one of the few things that I haven't had the chance to do. I talked about Youth Corps, working at the museum (JECM), just getting out there telling people what we do was a lot of fun. It was a very good experience meeting everybody that we got a chance to meet. I would love to do it again, if the time comes." - Ryan 

Click below for the full radio interview which also features NJ Youth Corps Co-Director Gary Patnosh and Crew Leader Doug Bailey.

Check out and please support Quest Community Vibrations Radio @ their website http://questyouthradio.com/

 

Listen To Entertainment Internet Radio Stations with Quest Youth Radio on BlogTalkRadio

The New York Times Travel Show Field Trip

Saturday March 1st marked the Jersey City Youth Corps trip to the New York Times Travel Show. Students were challenged to learn about different countries across the globe for general knowledge as well as gathering information for our new "Wonders Of The World" exhibit. This project is currently in development at the Jersey City Youth Corps work-site, Jersey Explorer Children's Museum. After a quick lunch stop in NYC, the team arrived at Jacob Javits Center for an engrossing two hours of entertainment and education.

Quick pre-briefing with students/staff on what to expect inside the travel show.

 Students/staff pose for quick picture before they get inside.

 Students/staff pose with the Zambia Tourism Board. Zambia is located in the continent of Africa.

 Students/staff in front of Sea World exhibit.

Here are some of the student reactions regarding the travel show.

Jamal: "It's definitely something you should experience at least once in your lifetime.You learn a lot of things. A lot of culture."

Ryan: "You get to see a lot of different places that not a lot of TV shows or news stations talk about. You get to see the culture and how nice it is over there and whether you would like to go there or not. It opens your mind to a lot."

Steven: "I came in and it looked very interesting. The more I got into the exhibits, the more I learned about what was going on. You learn about all these places that people don't really know about. There are familiar countries, but they are also these small countries that are actually very interesting."

Chris: "It was pretty fun, we got to win some prizes - but you still get to learn."

Kennay: "I had fun, I liked touring the different places. Thailand, Japan - that was real cool and fun."

Stephanie: "I liked the different types of countries. There were many different cultures and environments. They cook differently and have different clothing and stuff. It was good just to get out of Jersey City."