Hello Steemit my name is Juju Camacho im a Community organizer for Hartford ct. Im a single father i have been self employed for 12 yrs what i do for a living is put together Community Events involving Skate, Hip Hop and Festivals. My Organization is called UnderGround Coalition LLC. recently we have been talking to realtors for a Downtown Location to turn into a community center called the LXY Community Center it is located in the heart of Downtown Hartford. (im sorry for the repost this is dream i wanna make reality)
Im looking to see if the Steemit Community would help us fundraise to get the location. Its $8,000 deposit or proof that we can get funding from grants and have gotten funding in the past. We can produce those documents but at the end of the day its $$$ even though its about community and youth. I have signed a agreement to be in the space August 1st but i must convince the owners and realtor with the documents or give a deposit to get the space.In the space we will have a internet cafe. I would love to post that Steemit was a sponsor in big bold letters and let the youth come on this platform post, learn about the community. I ask for your help with upvotes and donations it would be greatly appreciated below is our mission and what we plan on doing with the space. I thank you again Steemit for taking the time to read this and your upvotes/donations.
L.X.Y (LEAGUE OF XTRAORDINARY YOUTH) COMMUNITY CENTER
Summary
The necessity for a safe space geared toward children, teenagers, and young adults is obvious in any
large city such as Hartford. Youth, especially boys and girls of color (although not exclusively), may be
be continually exposed to (if not traumatized by) negative factors such as violence in their
neighborhood. While school can sometimes provide a temporary reprieve from these types of negative
environments, this is not always the case and the school environment can be a continuation from their
home environment. Additionally, the cutting of services and positions in Hartford Public Schools and
the Department of Social Services, has created a situation of increased vulnerability for Hartford youth,
since the city will be trying to do “more with less” i.e. with less staff, programs, and money.
With all these factors (and more) in mind, there is void for a unique community space, where youth can
go to aside from the home and school. This is most important in the afternoons and evenings between
school and returning to their neighborhood, and it is also very important during the summer months
when school is out. The LXY Community Center will fill this void by being a unique community space
for the youth of Hartford and downtown Hartford in general.
LXY Community Center will serve the community by providing a safe physical space for youth from
diverse lingual, ethnic, racial, class, generational, and geographic groups. LXY will also serve the
community at large by providing unique and engaging educational opportunities involving dance,
poetry, visual art, culture, health, decision making, collective action, technology, life skills, and
entrepreneurship. LXY is not solely about creating a community space, it is about creating a family
environment. A environment where everyone is a part of the family no matter what their personal
history or background may entail. An environment founded on positivity, knowledge, fun, and growth,
especially if those who enter LXY are not receiving those types of influences elsewhere in their lives.
Approach and Methodology
LXY's approach to serve youth in downtown Hartford involves three core tenets:
Unique and engaging programming
Education and skill development
A fun family atmosphere.
Unique and engaging programming
While some programming geared toward youth in community spaces may be engaging in traditional
ways such as games and sports, this approach is nowhere near unique. LXY will engage youth
interested in poetry (spoken word, rap), dance (traditional, breakdancing), visual art (painting, graphic
design, graffiti writing), music (production and DJ'ing), technology, film, video and other motivating
pursuits, to not only hone their craft in these areas but to build relationships from people throughout
Hartford who are expressing themselves similarly. LXY, through it's extensive network of artists will
also provide mentors for burgeoning young artists to take the next steps towards pursuing art as a career.
Education and skill development
While LXY will be about having fun and expressive activities, it will also be about learning and
education. It will not be like school though. The education youth will receive from LXY will be
practical, including life skill development, physical skills, business skill development and
entrepreneurship. LXY is about giving youth the tools to succeed in the world, whether these tools are
social, physical health, emotional, financial, intellectual, or entrepreneurial.
Fun family environment
The LXY community center, will be just that- a center of the community. Not only for youth, but by
extension, for their parents as well. Balancing the focus on education and skill development with fun
games and activities such as video game tournaments will provide this space with a strong mixture of
work and play, and everything in between.
Products, Resources, and Services
The LXY community center, once fully operational, intends to provide the following breadth of
products, resources, and services to the community:
Health classes (meditation, yoga, martial arts)
Internet cafe
Breakdancing (b-boy) classes
Workshops and trainings
DJ services
Merchandise (food, drink, apparel)
Poetry events
Hip-hop events
Cultural events
Art shows
Game tournaments
Film festivals
Screen printing
Graphic design
Business development
Technology classes
Benefits
Ultimately, The LXY Community will benefit the youth of Hartford and downtown Hartford in many
noticeable ways:
Provide a safe and welcoming space for all youth
Enhance life skill development for youth
Enhance self-advocacy and self-empowerment skills for youth
Enhance critical thinking skills for youth
Enhance social and emotional skills for youth
Enhance technological skills for youth
Enhance artistic skills for youth
Enhance health and nutrition skills for youth
Connect youth with the downtown Hartford community and vice-versa
Showcase local artists in the downtown Hartford area
Provide increased arts-based and cultural events in the Asylum Street section of downtown
Hartford
Forge partnerships with organizations and businesses in downtown Hartford for mutual benefit
Bring more people and attention to this area of downtown Hartford, which will positively
impact surrounding businesses
Conclusion
Although creating a community center is not unique, what sets apart LXY Community Center from
other types of models is its approach, methodology, and physical location. The owners of this space
already have an extensive combined history in event planning, promoting, and organizing, and have
extensive networks as such. Therefore, with the support from other non-profit organizations,
businesses, and the city of Hartford, the LXY Community Center will have an immeasurable impact on
the youth in Hartford but also on the culture of how people engage and interact with youth in general.
When coupled with the tremendous potential afforded by their downtown location, LXY is destined for
tremendous success, which to them, is all about the number of lives they can touch and help grow with
this institution.