2012 Accomplishments

2012 Youthlinc Service Year Team Accomplishments

153 secondary and college students have successfully completed their Service Year, mentored by 59 adult professionals to:

• Contribute a cumulative 13,376 of local service all over Utah
• Raise a cumulative $78,967 in small contributions toward in-country projects (not counting donations for construction projects from the ever generous Michel Family Foundation or Rotary International Grants provided through several Utah clubs) 
• Collect nearly $200,000 in donated school, medical, hygiene supplies and clothing.

Education Committees: 

• Oversaw the creation process, scheduling and teaching of thousands of interactive, hands-on lesson plans taught by teams in all sites. Lessons taught on general health, business development, vocational skills, cultural information and basic English.
• Raised hundreds of dollars, and supplies for thousands of educational kits which included books, pencils, pens, rulers, glue, paper, erasers, pencil sharpeners and shoes.
• Teachers worked with teachers at our sites to share good teaching practices. 

Medical Committees:

• Prepared and taught countless lessons on topics such as the skeletel and digestive systems, washing hands, transmission of diseases, wound care, respect and family life, water purification, waterborne illness, how to use water filters, CPR, deworming, HIV/Aids prevention, first aid, dental hygiene, maturation and feminine hygiene lessons.
• Conducted health fairs for the communities, offering Q&A sessions. 
• Collected and distributed hundreds of feminine hygiene kits, cycle beads, reusable pads, hundreds of basic and comprehensive first aid and hygiene kits, eye glasses, mosquito nets, and medications to help with malaria, worms, basic pain, and antibiotics. 
• Raised money to renovate medical centers, build a gravel driveway to clinic allowing it to stay open during the rainy season, and secure space for a dispensary for villagers to distribute medication. 
• Visited hospitals, and schools for mentally challenged, brainstormed ways to best help disabled populations. Fixed wheelchairs. 
• Provided oral fluoride treatments. 
• Conducted interviews within the homes of the villagers in many sites, collecting valuable information and allowing for strong connections between the team members and community.

Cultural Committees:  

• Presented history and cultural lessons to their teams before arriving to their international sites.
• Planned ceremonies performing songs and dances, poetry, get-to-know-you games, talent shows, and skits that all helped build bridges between the cultures. 
• Organized cultural exchanges such as soccer tournaments, discussion groups, and fun fairs. 
• Gathered donations for games and activities for kids in the village: jump ropes, balls of all sorts, frisbees, parachutes, and more. 
• Worked on the Mondo Art Project, exchanging art with students from each site and painting murals in every community. 
• Conducted shoe drives where thousands of shoes were donated and distributed. 
• Raised money for and provided 3 guitars for a community center, and $2,500 for bikes to give to students who were excelling academically.

Construction Committees:

• Installed 113 water filters in the homes of villagers, and followed up on families who received filters in 2011. Invested in rain water harvesting, and dug out trenches for water pipes
• Renovated 1 community center, 1 baby school, 2 primary schools, 1 secondary school, 2 medical clinics and 1 computer lab. Completed construction of 1 preschool.
• Poured cement for walking paths, sidewalks and a concrete floor for a new community dining hall
• Built, repaired, sanded and varnished furniture for schools and libraries
• Constructed two bridges and a causeway, a fish pond and chicken coop 
• Built fences, dining tables, benches, and a cement compost and fire-burning pit to help keep waste under control.
• Installed 4 solar panels and lights in school buildings.

Vocational Committees: 

• Taught business lessons on the 4 P’s of business (Product, Price, Promotion, and Placement).
• Successfully taught groups of women and students how to make soap. 
• Taught computer classes, and set up a computer network with 10 computers. 
• Worked with students to experiment with "hanging" bag gardens. Also, taught gardening classes and distributed seed starter packets. 
• Organized home visits in which members of the team would visit, interview and assess the families’ health and nutritional status.

Microenterprise Committees: 

• Fundraised for and provided hundreds of chicken, water buffalos and cows to over 65 predetermined families that will then pass along the animal’s offspring to other poor families.
• Taught traditional microfinance lessons to 8 previously selected individuals; each participant received a $233 loan to be paid back. 
• Met with the Catholic Women’s Association-- a group of 300 women preparing to start their own businesses-- to discuss how to move forward with giving loans in the future. 
• Conducted personal interviews of 12 of the poorest women in the community and interviewed last year's borrowers to hear the progress of loans given in past years.