dreamprogram.org The DREAM Program @DREAMprogram
The Village Mentoring Organization
Pine Meadow/John Graham DREAM Quarterly Report December 2012-February 2013 Greetings from DREAM! This quarter marked the end of the fall semester, included “J-Term” (a shortened term just in January) and the beginning of thespring semester. Even though the mentors were away from school periodically, they still managed to pack in a lot of great DREAMing this quarter!
Highlights from the quarter include: •
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The culminating trip to Whirlie’s World was the last DREAM event of the fall semester. The group came together for a day there to celebrate all of the fun, enrichment, and learning that took place during the previous several months! DREAM office staff surprised the hard working mentors of the Pine Meadow/John Graham program with a “Happy DREAMentines Day” raid (a raid is basically a surprise event put on for any group of DREAMers). Office staff and DREAM alumni surprised the mentors at a meeting with cookies to decorate, candy, Valentines Day cards, and decorations, and the whole group spent some time recognizing one another for all their hard work and accomplishments within DREAM. Four Pine Meadow/John Graham youth and 6 of their mentors attended Winter Adventure Day this quarter, and it was a HUGE hit! As the group departed, echoes of “I can’t wait to come back to Camp DREAM” could be heard!
Weekly Programming with Children: • • • • • •
The group enjoyed a Friday of silliness and singing with karaoke. Several teen DREAM mentees joined their mentors at an annual Dance Marathon at Middlebury College to raise money for Vermont Children’s Hospital at Fletcher Allen. The DREAMers spent one rainy Friday having a game day, playing board games, ping pong, foosball, and indoor versions of tag games! Members of the dance and beat boxing campus clubs visited the DREAMers one Friday to give a dance/beat box workshop. The first Friday back to DREAM after the Middlebury College break was celebrated with a fun and energetic gym day. Middlebury College welcomed an influx of new students this February, students affectionately termed ‘Febs.’ As part of the welcoming process, there was an activity fair on campus one Friday which DREAM mentees and mentors attended to try and recruit new mentors for the program. Who can resist a cute kid asking you to play with them?
Special Events for Children and Mentors: •
The culminating trip to Whirlie’s World was the last DREAM event of the fall semester. The group came together for a day there to celebrate all of the fun, enrichment, and learning that took place during the previous several months!
Capacity Building and Fundraising: •
Mentors began some springtime recruitment efforts at an activities fair on campus for incoming freshman ‘Febs.’
Office: 30 Community Drive, South Burlington, VT | Mail: P.O. Box 361, Winooski, VT 05404 │ (802) 338-8979 | info@dreamprogram.org
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DREAM staff members were busy this quarter preparing, collecting forms, and talking to families about Winter Adventure Camp (WAC), which took place over several weekends in February. Three Camp Work Days occurred in December and January. DREAM staff and volunteers prepared for WAC by moving hay, setting up tarps, and building a warm space (nicknamed the Zombie Apocalypse Shack) at Camp DREAM. The 2013 WAC season was a success! After some last minute changes due to a lack of snow, 29 teens and 15 mentors celebrated Camp DREAM’s history by participating in games and competitions at Teen WAC. DREAM staff organized a Winter Adventure Day for youth in the Northern Vermont Local Programs. Activities included sledding, broomball, and cross-country skiing. This year, 43 mentees and 33 mentors attended Winter Adventure Day, which originally had to be postponed due to cold temperatures. Several Pine Meadow/John Graham adventurers attended the day and had a blast! After Winter Adventure Day, 7 youth and 3 mentors attended Overnight WAC. Highlights included night broomball, roasting apples, and sleeping at the Town Grange in Fletcher, VT! For the Poultney and Willowbrook programs, Winter Adventure Day took place at Emerald Lake State Park in East Dorset, VT, where 6 youth and 4 mentors joined staff members for a day of sledding, broomball, and making fairy houses.
Alumni Involvement: •
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The 2012 Alumni Appeal wrapped up after setting a record for the number of individual Alumni donors! The Appeal raised over $40k from 273 donors, and five Local Programs reached or exceeded their goals of 25% giving. The Alumni Organization launched its first annual scholarship opportunity for DREAM mentee alumni who are pursuing college degrees. This year, three former mentees were awarded $1,000 scholarships to help pay for college. Alumni members in DC and Philadelphia have organized and participated in fundraising events to support DREAM’s expansion into those cities. So far, they have raised several thousand dollars! DREAM Alumni members Paul Espina, Evan Eckstein, Devin Kulick, and Travis Near volunteered at several WAC weekends in February.
Office: • • •
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DREAM staff learned how to update DREAM’s new website at a staff retreat in December. Vermont Programs Staff reflected on the fall semester and looked ahead to spring semester and summer planning at a Programs Staff retreat in December. In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., DREAM staff and volunteers participated in several Day of st Service events on January 21 . In Vermont, several staff members and volunteers headed to Camp DREAM to prepare for the WAC weekends ahead. Others prepared a meal at the Ronald McDonald House in Burlington and coordinated volunteers and service projects in Bennington. In Boston, staff members volunteered with one of DREAM’s housing partners, Madison Park Development Corporation and on campus at Northeastern University. th On January 24 , DREAM’s Executive Director, Mike Loner, and Evaluation Coordinator, Elizabeth Haag presented at the National Mentoring Summit in Washington, D.C. They presented DREAM’s Village Mentoring model and approach to working with college student mentors to mentoring supporters from across the country. Lisanne Hegman joined the DREAM staff as a bookkeeper in the South Burlington Office.
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DREAM observed National Mentoring Month by holding a mentor appreciation night for mentors from the Northern Vermont programs. Mentors, staff, and volunteers enjoyed ice cream from Ben and Jerry’s as a thank you for all of the time and hard work they have given to DREAM. DREAM’s newest Local Program at Johnson State College held its first DREAM Friday on st February 1 . The group participated in activities including building a newspaper fort, playing games, and dancing to music from a jukebox on campus! DREAM staff distributed surveys to parents of DREAM youth. More than 65% of parents responded! The surveys are part of DREAM’s commitment to assessing the impact DREAM has on families in the program. DREAM was named a Champion in Action by Citizen’s Bank in Boston. The award includes a $35k unrestricted grant, media coverage, and extensive promotional and volunteer support for DREAM's work in the Boston area.
Thank you for your ongoing support of DREAM. If you would like additional or more detailed information, please contact me by email or by phone. You can always look back at past reports or other programs’ reports by going to: http://dreamprogram.org/mentor-program/vermont/local-program-reports. DREAM big, Sarah Caliendo Program Director scaliendo@dreamprogram.org 802.338.8979