Residents and community leaders will gather to discuss programming for neighborhood youth at the annual Springfield Promise Neighborhood Visioning Dinner on Thursday, April 6, from 5:00 – 7:00pm at Hayward Middle School, 1700 Clifton Avenue.
The goal of this yearly event is to facilitate conversations between residents and community leaders regarding important issues and needs. Past events have focused on topics such as community gardening and time banking.
This year’s focus is on families, specifically those with school-age children, and the need for easily accessible, high-quality youth programming in the community. The conversations will focus around three main questions: 1. What programs are currently available? 2. What programs would you like to see? 3. How can we, the community, contribute?
The dinner features several special guests who have devoted their life’s work to helping children succeed.
Ms. Nettie Carter, a Clark County Juvenile Court Administrator, will lead the evening as the Mistress of Ceremonies.
Mr. Jim Scoby, a retired Springfield City Schools teacher, currently serving as Lincoln Elementary’s school counselor, will provide guests with a look into our children’s lives. He will share with us some of the hard-ships that Lincoln Elementary students are currently facing and ways that we can help them.
Mr. Paul Weber, CEO of the Springfield Family YMCA, will share information about after-school and summer programs available through the Y.
Springfield Promise Neighborhood Association members will contribute a meal of bread, salad, spaghetti and dessert with dinner service provided by Hayward Builder’s Club and Student Council volunteers.
A Hero Awards ceremony will recognize a Lincoln Elementary staff member, a Promise Neighborhood resident, a wider community resident and a local business for their contributions over the past year. Lincoln Elementary parent and Springfield Promise Neighborhood Association member, Monica Lasiter, explains the reason for the Hero Awards, “We feel that it’s important to recognize outstanding people in our community that may otherwise get overlooked.”
The Springfield City Schools, the Clark County Department of Job and Family Services, United Way of Clark, Champaign and Madison Counties, the Turner Foundation and the Springfield Foundation make this event possible.