Community Works Events: 1/25-1/31

Community Works member organizations are continuously working for equity and social justice in Boston and surrounding areas. Check out their programming for the week starting Monday, January 25th 2016.

1. Alternatives for Community and Environmental Justice: Member Meeting

Date: Wednesday, January 27th 2016

Time: 6:00pm-8:00pm

Location: 2201 Washington Street
Suite 302 (rear entrance off Ruggles St.)
Roxbury, MA. 02119

When is it going to matter to you?
Are you ready to take action on the injustices going on in our neighborhoods?
Come join us at our member meeting to discuss how we can take action on current issues going on in our communities!

For more information, visit the Facebook event page.

   2.  Emerge (Counseling and Education to Stop Domestic Violence): Registration for Counseling Abusers Training

Description: This course is intended for anyone working with families affected by domestic violence. The course meets BIP group leader training requirements in Massachusetts and in many other states. Over the past 6 years, over 1000 people from 45 states and 15 nations have taken this course.  

Dates: Wednesday, February 24th-Friday, February 26th 2016

Location: First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church
630 Massachusetts Ave.
Arlington, MA. 02476

Tuition: $250 for the first person and $175 for each additional person from an agency.

For more information and to register, visit the website.

   3.  Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD): The Art of Advocacy

 Date: Thursday, January 28th 2016

Time: 7:30pm-8:30pm

Location: Luther Bonney Hall,
85 Bedford Street,
Portland, ME 04103.

The federal courts play a role in all of our lives—even if we don’t always realize it. They can play a powerful role in ensuring that the underrepresented have their voices heard and their rights protected. Hear Mary L. Bonauto of GLAD, Kate Knox of Bernstein Shur, and Zach Heiden of the ACLU of Maine discuss how the federal courts can help propel a movement when legislative or ballot efforts fail the minority.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page.

Spotlight On: Hawthorne Youth and Community Center

On the 30^th of January 2016, Hawthorne Youth and Community Center (HYCC) will celebrate the anniversary of its incorporation in 1973. Founded in 1967, this organization has a long and rich history of providing educational, cultural and recreational support for the Highland Park community. The center aims to promote a strong sense of unity amongst the residents of the area, allowing neighbors to collaborate on various projects while celebrating their diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

Hawthorne frequently opens its space up for the use of community groups and organizations such as the Highland Park Neighborhood Coalition which has been able to use the center’s premises for their meetings and events. HYCC also holds after-school programs for children from the community, varying in age from 5-12 years, as well as teenagers up to the age 21. The center endeavors to provide opportunities for youth to express themselves through the arts, with community artists visiting frequently to conduct workshops in visual art and spoken word poetry. Nutrition and urban agriculture are also major focus areas for the center, which has working relationships with Haley House in order to facilitate these projects. Community members are able to participate in healthy cooking classes as well as planting and cultivation in the garden located at 184 Highland Avenue.

The Highland Park community has recently undergone a flurry of change, with many new families with younger children moving into the area. Additionally, residents are grappling with the rapid construction of new apartments and housing units valued at high prices which threaten to force community members to move out in search of cheaper housing. In the midst of these changes, HYCC has recently completed its “Raising the Roof” campaign, a 10-year work in progress which involved the expansion of the center’s building to meet the need for more facilities. The space now includes a gallery to showcase the children’s art, a movie screen on the back of the building for use in warm weather, and more indoor and outdoor space for after-school activities. The center established a relationship with local architecture students who worked with the children, engaging them in the design process and exploring the changes they wanted to see as a result of the construction.

The executive board of the HYCC consists of volunteer members, who are presently tasked with securing sustainable sources of funding for the center’s operations in addition to finding a new executive director. To find out more about Hawthorne and how you can get involved, see here for contact details.

Marchelle Raynor, HYCC board member, offered this tribute in memory of the former coordinator:

The former Program Coordinator, Samantha Sadd, passed away last February, leaving a void. Sam was the heart and soul of the center, working tirelessly to make sure students were exposed to the world beyond their immediate neighborhood. Many of the current adults who support the center remember skiing, day camps, and art projects that live to this day. Sam was soft spoken and petite but her ideas carried more weight than many strong men. She knew all the movers and shakers in the city. We honor Sam with our new building and new resolve to make all our residents better citizens for this commonwealth.

Community Works Events: 1/18-1/24

Community Works member organizations are continuously working for equity and social justice in Boston and surrounding areas. Check out their programming for the week starting Monday, January 18th 2016.

1. ACLU Massachusetts: Springfield School Justice Summit II

Date: Wednesday, January 20th 2016.

Time: 3:00-5:00pm

Location: Community Room, Springfield Central Library, 220 State Street, Springfield, MA 01103

Join Springfield families in a conversation about budget priorities, factors driving harsh discipline, the criminalization of classroom behavior and envisioning the schools our community deserves.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page.

2. Alternatives for Community and Environmental Justice: Volunteer Nights

Date: Wednesday, January 20th 2016 (and every first and third Wednesday of the month)

Time: 5:00-8:00pm

Location: 2201 Washington Street,
Suite 302 (rear entrance off Ruggles St.)
Roxbury, MA. 02119

ACE builds the power of communities of color and low-income communities in Massachusetts to eradicate environmental racism and classism, create healthy, sustainable communities, and achieve environmental justice. ACE needs your help on different projects that help move us toward our mission. Food will be provided. Childcare & interpretation available upon request.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page.

3. Asian American Resource Workshop: MLK Day of Service- Chinatown Clean-Up

Date: Monday, January 18th 2016.

Time: 9:00am-1:00pm

Location: Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, 885 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02111

Join the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center as they commemorate Martin Luther King Day with a day of community service in Boston’s historic Chinatown. Youth and adult volunteers will participate in community clean-up efforts, while learning the history of the neighborhood and different issues that the community faces. Volunteers will also work together on a collaborative art project that highlights the teachings of MLK Jr. on the importance of service.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page.

4. Our Bodies Ourselves: Now hiring Communications Associate

Application deadline: Sunday, January 24th 2016.

Our Bodies Ourselves (OBOS), a nonprofit women’s health education and advocacy organization, is seeking a part-time communications associate to research and write blog posts, edit health content, and post to Twitter and Facebook. This position is contracted for 10 hours per week and can be done from any location within the United States.

To apply, please send a resume, cover letter and two writing samples on health related topics to Kiki Zeldes: kiki@ourbodiesourselves.org. (If possible, send links to writing published online.) No phone calls, please.

For more information, read the full listing here.