Help the Y Save Democracy

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A nonprofit fundraiser supporting

YMCA of Superior California
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We're growing the next generation of civically engaged Californians.

15 donors

raised $1,354

100 donor goal

Since 1948, our YMCA’s Youth & Government (Y&G) program has provided an unmatched experiential learning opportunity for high school students. By modeling California’s legislature and courts, participants have the opportunity to build skills such as critical thinking, persuasive speech and writing, project management, and collaboration. Our program is rooted in the YMCA’s core values of Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility, and believes in the importance of servant leadership and media literacy to a healthy democracy. 

Our goal is to grow the next generation of civically engaged Californians. Civically engaged Californians recognize the importance of: 

  • Civic Knowledge: They understand the structure and function of government.
  • Civic Awareness: They can identify the major issues facing their communities.
  • Civic Action: They are equipped with the tools they’ll need to make change in their community.

But don't take our word for it. Here's what our participants say about the impact of the program:

  • "Y&G has given me so much. I have friends from all over the state without whom I don’t know where I’d be. I’ve learned public speaking and interpersonal skills and how to get along in an environment where I barely knew anyone because I couldn’t convince my friends to join. But most of all, Y&G gave me a voice. I went from hardly being able to speak around my delegation to losing my voice at our last conference, and it’s all because of the family spirit in Y&G." 
  • "Something that surprised me is how open and welcoming everyone in the delegation and it made me feel less out of place and encouraged me to share my thoughts a little more often."
  • "It is okay to not have intricate prior knowledge about government. This is an amazing program to learn about the inner working of government and growing in civic knowledge. You do not have to have an extensive knowledge of government to enjoy the world of Y&G but by the end you will be passionate about it."
  • "Something I am personally proud of this year is going out of my comfort zone to speak in front of a lot of people even though it made me really anxious."
  • "This delegation truly feels like a family. Our advisors, returners, new delegates, and sister delegations all take on roles in our own small community that has grown to mean the world to me." 

And here's why they urge you to give:

  • "I would definitely make sure more members could join I know plenty of boys in my classes that I convinced to join Y&G last year but due to money concerns and my lack of knowledge on the club wasn’t able to give them the right details but now I feel like without the bear of money on their shoulders they would definitely join. "
  • "With more donations, we could make Y&G more accessible. Because we span such a large area of school-age people, our MUN and Y&G programs have the potential to bring incredible opportunities to a wide range of people. More donations could help our delegations expand recruitment and outreach efforts and allow a much broader demographic to experience the benefits that this program has and will provide."

This fundraiser supports

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YMCA of Superior California

Organized By Christiana Dominguez

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