Holiday Housing Party

Covered by the Norwalk Patch 16 teens came together to create a youth-led holiday party for children at the Norwalk Housing Authority on December 19th.  The teens initiated, managed, and led the party, which included a professional photo with Santa on his sleigh, arts and crafts, games and a give away book table. The group of high school teens hoped to teach children and themselves about the gift of giving.  Melissa Gabriel,11^th grader at NHS, said “we brought gifts that we had collected from our homes and others donated.  We helped the kids select gifts for their families and friends, not for themselves. The focus was thinking of others. It was great because we wrapped their gifts while they made cards.”  Yeneris Reyes proudly stated, “I know we made a lot of kids happy and allowed them to give to others as well.  We learned a lot because all of us were responsible for everything.  It was a really fun experience too.”

Carver Center Youth development program partnered with Kids Helping Kids this fall and offered a workshop called Turn Your Passion into Action.  The purpose is to expose teens to the power they have to make a difference in their communities and have them develop concrete leadership skills in the process.

Thank you to Christine Simmons Portraiture and Santa for making this event so memorable.