This summer’s Youth Engaged in Action (YEA!) graduation was part celebration and part conference as groups from each Boston, Malden, Medford and Everett neighborhood shared their “Photo Voice” projects. YEA! is all about direct experience, and these 13-year-olds conducted field research not only to identify critical issues affecting their communities but to recommend solutions. The 2019 YEA! class of 100…
In a room filled with excitement and anticipation for the start of another new school year, the ABCD Head Start & Children’s Services Summer Welcome Back Citywide event on August 14th successfully balanced business with pleasure. Among the business items covered at the large gathering at the Marriott Boston Copley Place hotel were a presentation on the program’s Five Year…
This summer ABCD has expanded its food security efforts to make sure all families have their nutritional needs met. In the Boston Public Schools 78% of all students qualify for free or reduced breakfast and lunch. Many families depend on these meals to provide their children with proper nutrition during the school year, leaving them vulnerable during the summer months….
Do you crank up the tunes in your earbuds? Attend noisy sporting events? Work in a noise-polluted environment? A recent New Yorker article cautions that noise pollution may be the next big health crisis. Having anticipated that, ABCD Health Services and ABCD Board Vice Chair James A. Owens, Jr. created the “Lower the Sound, Save Your Hearing” public awareness campaign….
Recognizing the emotional value pets bring to people who struggle to get by, ABCD announced a groundbreaking partnership with the Animal Rescue League of Boston (ARL) to bring high-quality, low-cost pet wellness care to residents of Dorchester, Roxbury and Mattapan. On July 10th a ribbon cutting ceremony took place for the new Wellness Waggin’, a mobile veterinary clinic equipped with…
ABCD continued to strike a productive balance between invaluable experience and fresh perspectives in electing new and returning board officers and new directors at our June 26th Board of Directors meeting. The organization also recognized Jean M. Babcock who joined the board 44 years ago and stepped down from the role of Treasurer after 20 years. She remains as an active board member….
For most young people, getting their first job—often a summer job—is a fundamental step as they move toward adulthood, laying the foundation on which they can build future careers. However, in many low-income neighborhoods, summer job opportunities are almost nonexistent. ABCD’s SummerWorks program responds to this problem, helping hundreds of low-income Boston teens every year to get a paid summer…
The Pet Wellness Waggin’ is a mobile veterinary unit outfitted with an exam room and a surgical suite. It’s a program provided thanks in part to the Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD) and PetSmart Charities. The program, which is available to residents of Dorchester, Mattapan and Roxbury, will provide a care package to cats and dogs for $10….
Anticipation fills each corner of the room as streamers hang next to banners that read “Congratulations Graduate” behind balloons with “Class of 2019” written on them. Family members sit in the audience as they anxiously wait for their graduate to come out. All of their hard work, sacrifices and choices have led to this moment – Graduation Day! Getting to…
There was a plenty of cheer at Fenway Park on June 18, and this time it wasn’t because of the World Series Champion Red Sox. ABCD’s 22nd Annual Field of Dreams softball benefit event raised $240,000 for the ABCD SummerWorks program, helping make it possible for more than 700 low-income teenagers to secure paying jobs, while receiving invaluable education, mentoring…