Youth Programs and Activities

CHAMPIONS  (Children Have A Major Place In Our Neighborhood Services) is a series of programs for the children of Mercy Center’s families, presenting them with alternatives to the violence and negativity to which they are often subjected. These activities address the needs of children for a safe environment and provide an opportunity to advance their creative and educational potential through individual assistance and group activities.

      Current Programs include:
 

After-School – Homework assistance, computer tutorials, enrichment activities (e.g., trips to museums/libraries), tutoring, and mentoring (targeted to most at-risk children). 
 

Girl Talk – Informal weekly support groups for girls where they discuss issues that are relevant to them such as relationships, self-esteem building, communication, and other concerns.  

      

Peace Programs – Volunteer high school students
teach Mercy Center children the basics of conflict
 resolution and peace work through artistic
expression, group discussion and celebration.

 

Gardening Programs – Children learn about plants and see how they grow. Connections are made between conditions necessary for raising healthy plants and healthy people. Activities reinforce appreciation of plants as sources of beauty, food, and clean air. Mercy Center's Garden provides a place for intergenerational sharing about the native plants found in home countries. 

 

Fiver Foundation Program – In collaboration with local organizations, the Fiver Foundation offers inner-city boys and girls the opportunity to attend a tuition-free camp each summer (two-week minimum) starting at 8/9 years of age and continuing for a period of ten years.  Designated as a local partner in 2003, Mercy Center now has 27 children participating in the program. 

 

Seasonal Camps (overnight) – Opportunities for our children to attend overnight summer camps with the St. Vincent de Paul Camp and the Mark Bavaro Camp.

 

Winter/Spring After-School Camps – Two one-week programs for Mercy Center children ages 4–14, directed by visiting college students from Canisius College in Buffalo, NY, and Assumption College in Worcester, MA.

 

Special Events – Trips to Yankee Stadium, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Museum of Radio and Television; holiday parties to celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.