"It's all about our young people" is the phrase rattling around in my head; it keeps me focussed and stimulated as we carry out our mahi.
As we see the smiles on young people's faces and see them proudly puffing their chests for what they have achieved, we know that we are doing our job well. That feeling of satisfaction our young people feel when they surprise themselves, never having thought they could achieve this, or they could experience that. That's the sweet spot.
This next quarter will be full of graduations and celebrations, camps and day trips, signing off the year and madly completing those last minute tasks in search of finishing well.
I continue to be amazed at the resilience and bravery of young people and the amount of support that is in this community for them.
Thank you so much for your tautoko and awhi. Our young people are champions, supported by a team of champions cheering them along to amazing change and transformation.
Ngā mihi
Dan & the team.
Our Youth Coaches are out in the community working with a variety of vulnerable young people, including:
- those who are not in education, employment or training, or are at high risk of disengaging,
- young (teenage) parents, and
- other young people who cannot live at home due to family breakdown.
Our focus is working one-on-one with these young people, and this year, for the first time ever, we have started bringing these young people together for shared experiences and connection.
We created a purposeful drop in space on Tuesday afternoons, inviting these young people onsite. With the piloting of the Arise Academy programme (Level 2 Formation qualification), and adding social activities to break the ice, our rangatahi have started to build new relationships with coaches and each other.
I've enjoyed drop ins. It feels like coming to see my friends. I've actually made some pretty solid friendships here.
~ Sade, age 16
It can be scary and uncomfortable to step into the unknown. Seeing the change in our young people over the course of this past year, from shy individuals to a group of friends supporting each other, has been due to the courage of our awesome rangatahi who stepped into that uncomfortable place and made it theirs.
Our young people love the farm. It creates a great space for learning and building connection. Marshmallows over the fire pit is always a hit.
This week our rangatahi went down to Manukau to take on the white water challenge at Vector Wero.
Most had never done anything like this before and they smashed it!
Join the 1000.
Our 1000@10 Club was introduced a number of years ago as a way to create effective funding for Springboard and engage you, our community, in playing a tangible part in solutions to the challenges our young people face.
Simply put: if 1000 people contribute just $10 per month over the course of a year, Springboard receives $120,000 in funds. It's a small way to make a big difference.
We currently have 380 places held in the 1000.
You may notice we have more presence on your social media over the next few weeks, as we highlight some of the issues our young people face and invite more people to support us by "joining the 1000."
Can you help us out by:
- liking, commenting and sharing our social media posts,
- forwarding our emails, or
- inviting your friends to join the 1000 with you.
If you are currently part of our 1000, thank you! Your faithful support really makes the difference and we are so appreciative of it.
If you haven't seen the campaign yet, you can check it out here.
Sade's Story
When we asked Sade if she would be ok with being interviewed and having part of her story published, she responded with "Yeah, I can do that" and after a pause "Am I that awesome?"
Ever since she was a child, Sade (16) has dreamed of being a police officer. Her Nan and Poppa were the significant people who consistently encouraged her, pushing her to keep studying, stay in school and pursue that dream.
Mainstream high school was not a great experience, with full classes, lack of one-on-one attention, and comparison to other students.
"I felt real shitty at school because the teachers would always compare me to other students who were doing better than me. When I was in school, I didn’t like asking teachers for help or to look at my work because they made me feel stupid."
After being bullied for having short hair (she shaved her head for cancer), Sade became a "not good kid" and decided (due to other situations) that she couldn't be a cop because they were not what she had imagined they were.
In school, Sade participated in our Exit To Success programme. We designed this programme to support, equip and build relationships with young people as they navigate the transition out of school and into their next steps.
As her friends started to leave school, the motivation to continue in school began to fade.
Following the passing of both her Nan and her Poppa, Sade left. "I was just sad and I had no motivation to go".
Given the existing relationship Sade had with our youth coach, the intentional and purposed activity we introduced to our youth services area this year brought Sade onto our Springboard site.
"When I came to Springboard, I felt uncomfortable. I didn't know anything or anyone here. I was in my hoodrat era. I didn't like listening to people. I didn't like talking to people."
Sade joined our pilot programme with Arise Academy, and she didn't particularly enjoy it to begin with"but as the weeks went on, that’s when I started focusing on the actual work, and new strategies for learning."
Our drop in group is intentionally small. "We get to know each other really well and get to know the tutor and that made me feel like I could ask questions and not feel stupid about it".
Sade has passed all her assignments with excellence.
We asked Sade about how she sees herself after 3 terms at Springboard.
"I’m definitely brighter than I was when I first started. I’m more chatty. I actually enjoy learning now.
I like to take on big challenges. Even if I can’t do it, I like to give it a go. I think that’s the main one: I’m way brighter and now I can picture my future and where I’m going. Being here opened me up to knowing new, good people and knowing that I’m safe."
We asked Sade about how she sees herself after 3 terms at Springboard.
"I’m definitely brighter than I was when I first started. I’m more chatty. I actually enjoy learning now.
I like to take on big challenges. Even if I can’t do it, I like to give it a go. I think that’s the main one: I’m way brighter and now I can picture my future and where I’m going. Being here opened me up to knowing new, good people and knowing that I’m safe."
"The farm’s great! I love animals, I think the animals have helped me feel happier. I feel like working on the farm has been preparing me for life, talking to other people, observing all the families."
When we asked Sade about her dream of being a cop, she shared part of her journey around that dream.
"When I was about 13 I started wondering if cops were actually good, because there was a situation that happened and the police never really did anything about it."
However in the last 2 years she has reconsidered, and recognises that there are many problems in the world and the police can't fix everything, but she'd still like to make a difference in her community.
"I still want to be a cop now like I did when I was a kid but my motivation has changed. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a cop so I could be like my Poppa because my Poppa was awesome. Now, I still want to be a cop to honour him and be like him but I now have the bigger understanding that I can’t save the world, I can’t help everyone but I have the motivation to do my best to help everyone that I can."
Spring at Sheepworld
School holidays are here and there's a heap of fun things happening at Sheepworld.
Get your kids out of the house and on to the farm! Among other things, we've got face painting, a photo booth and baby bunnies!
Check out Sheepworld's school holiday details, including days and times for events, here:
Annual Fundraising Dinner
Venue: Springboard
Date: Saturday 9th November 2024
Time: 5.00pm - 9.30pm
Join us for an evening of family, food and fundraising amidst the beautiful setting that we call home. Celebrate with us and hear the stories of change that are taking place here.
We are thrilled to announce Kennards Hire and Northwood Developments Ltd are once again partnering with us to 'Double Your Donation' up to $100,000.
You're welcome to join us...
Register your attendance with mail@springboard.org.nz if you wish to come and help us to raise $100,000 for our young people.
Your ongoing support means we can continue to work with young people like Sade and the many others like her. You play a tangible part in changing our young people's lives and we are so glad you're with us on the journey.
Thanks for reading. Please reach out if you have any questions, comments or feedback.
We love to hear from our community.
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