A year in the life of YAT…

It’s been an exciting year for Youth Alive Trust in our 21st Birthday Celebration Year!  We’ve continued to run 4 after school clubs for all the different age ranges, catering for around 120 young people every week.  2010 highlights include activities like MasterChef, Deal or No Deal, creating Music Videos and a Sodium UV Party.  We have taken young people on camps to Living Springs, Waipara and Spencer Park and have been on trips all over Canterbury.  Our youthworkers have given over 30 hours per week to 3 of the local schools, particularly Aranui High and Central New Brighton Primary.  We have ran 8 Holiday Programmes – that’s over 200 kids between the ages of 5 and 12.  Our youthworkers have been in New Brighton library everyday after school, and on weekends and in school holidays, looking after the many young people who use it as a drop-in centre.  We have helped at 3 large Council events, and organised the Family Fun Night which attracted over 500 people from the Community on the night of Halloween.  Our 21st Birthday Celebrations brought ex staff, volunteers and trustees from all over the country together with current staff, volunteers, supporters and local dignitaries for a weekend of celebrations, including a formal meal for 110 people, a Live Band Night for 120 young people and the presentation of our history booklet dating back to pre 1988.  We also launched a new website, handed out newsletters and flyers to the community in order to raise our profile, took part in the New Brighton Christmas parade and launched Friends of Youth Alive Trust as a way of giving personal donations, and to help meet our budget shortfalls through increased costs and smaller grants.

 

All this is looked after by just 1 full time staff member, 3 Part time youthworkers and 1 student, who lead 40 volunteers who give over 5000 hours per year – and on a minimum wage, that’s $60,000 of free wages!  It’s our volunteers who are the life blood of what we do.  All this on a budget of only $200,000.  For what the community and church gets – we think that’s cheap!  Thanks to all who’ve been a part of Youth Alive Trust in 2010  – we look forward to what 2011 will bring! J