The staff, trustees and volunteers of Youth Alive Trust are thinking and praying for all those affected by the earthquake. All normal programmes are closed until further notice.

Youth Alive Trust has been working, serving and enjoying life with community young people from New Brighton for over 21 years! This Sunday after church, we’re offering a free lunch to anyone interested in hearing about how to be involved this year and what it means to be a leader!

Youth Alive Trust Leaders are fun, faithful, trustworthy and show a lifestyle of growing to be more like Jesus. They have a servant heart, wanting to… bless others and see the best for them. They want to develop their skills and charactor and they do it for the impact they’re making in their community – not the money!

Come here all about it, and bring a friend who may also be interested.

2011 Clubs are:

Cheeky Little Monkeys
Wednesdays 3pm – 4:45pm
Years 1 – 4
Leader: Gwenda

WAVE
Monday 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Years 5 – 6
Leader: Sophie & James

Rock Solid
Fridays 4:30pm – 6:00pm
Leaders: Amber & Rob

Sodium
Fridays 7pm – 9:30pm
Years 9 – 13
Leader: Matt

Other opportunities involve mentoring in school, and helping at community events, plus see the website for other ways you can get involved:

www.yat.org.nz

Lunch suggestions have been pizza or fish & chips, so please feel free to add your suggestion (note: we’re a charity!)

🙂

Position Available: Female High Schools Youthworker to work in Aranui High, Sodium Youth Cafe & New Brighton Library. Part Time – up to 25 hours per week, to be based at Grace Vineyard Beach Campus, starting asap. Qualities Needed: patience, servant heart, Christian ethos, love of the unloved, longevity! Please email office@yat.org.nz for an information sheet or call 3885459.

After months of fundraising (including sales of over 2000 sausages) local business, Dave Diggs Motors has come forward and sponsored a new Youth Alive Trust van!! A Year 2000, automatic with only 131,000k’s – this is a huge blessing and something we’re very grateful for! Look out for it driving around the young people of New Brighton for many years to come 🙂

Join us by taking part in the infamous Beach Blasts over the next two Saturdays. A fun event for the family, and our leaders will be running the beach games & face painting. Click the link for more details 🙂

http://bethere.co.nz/community/2011/5654-beach-blast-north-2011

Youth Alive Trust has just been granted funding from MSD to run a programme in the school holidays for High School students.  Our first programme is being ran from Monday 24th – Fri 28th January 2011, with only 24 places available.  The big bonus is there is it’s FREE – you just need to say why you’d like a place.  Brochures have already been posted out to Sodium and ex Holiday Programme young people, but if you’re keen to attend, grab a brochure from the office asap!  Running from 12pm – 5pm each day (allowing the teenagers the sleep-in they need), activities such as Kayaking, laser strike, mountain biking, Godly Head and a trip to Akaroa will bond together the group and give new and exciting challenges and experiences.  The programme is being lead by our High Schools Youthworkers Matty Tait & Emily Deck.

Our 21st Birthday Celebration Auction was a big success, however one item didn’t make the reserve – and it’s for sale now on Trade Me!  Closes Sunday 19th – so bid away!

http://www.trademe.co.nz/MyTradeMe/Sell/Current.aspx?source=sidebar

It’s been an exciting year for Youth Alive Trust in our 21^st 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 21^st 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

Reminder, No Sodium tonight as Unity East & Sodium are heading to BASE CAMP at Living Springs.  Sodium returns next Friday and is planning for an end of year Paintball Game 🙂

Click Here for all the info on this coming weekends 4 special Birthday Events!!