Youth Service Overview

Youth Service is the newest of Rotary's Avenues of Service. Many of the grants made by Youth Service were made by Community Service in the past, but Youth Service has a broader mandate. Local groups are encouraged to submit a grant application.

 

In addition to supporting worthwhile youth oriented non-profits, the club supports students at Dunn School, a local private day and boarding middle and high school in three areas:

During the 2022/2023 Rotary year Youth Service supported these local organizations. 

 

Noah's Anchorage (https://www.ciymca.org/locations/noahs-anchorage-ymca). Located in downtown Santa Barbara, Noah’s Anchorage is a licensed eight-bed youth homelessness prevention center for youth 12-17 years old. All services are voluntary, free and available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Services are low-barrier, immediate, and short-term to alleviate family tension, reduce stress, and create an ongoing system of care.

 

Youth Empowered (https://www.facebook.com/YouthEmpoweredSY/). The Youth Empowered fitness center is located in Solvang. It offers after school tutoring and fitness instruction, including powerlifting, squat, bench press, deadlift, kickboxing, and wrestling. Working with local families, it supports youth in both their physical,  academic, and personal development. 

 

Explore Ecology (https://exploreecology.org/). Explore Ecology is an environmental education and arts nonprofit located in Santa Barbara, California. It works with over 30,000 children a year, inspiring them to engage with the natural world, think critically, and experience the value of environmental stewardship. Explore Ecology programs include the Art From Scrap Creative ReUse Store and Gallery, Environmental Education, Watershed Resource Center, and School Gardens.

 

CASA of Santa Barbara County (https://www.sbcasa.org/). Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Santa Barbara County is a local nonprofit that recruits, trains, and supports community volunteers to serve as advocates for children who have experienced abuse or neglect throughout Santa Barbara County. CASA believes every child deserves a voice. A CASA volunteer gets to know the child and the child’s situation. The volunteer sees the child every week, and regularly talks to the child’s teachers, parents, other family members, social workers, lawyer, and often therapists, in order to get a clear picture of what is going on—and then the volunteer advocates for that child’s best interests.

 

Arts Outreach (https://www.artsoutreach.org/). Arts Outreach is a nonprofit community arts organization based in the Santa Ynez Valley. Recently celebrating its 43rd anniversary, it began in 1980 with five volunteer artists as an arts-in-schools program, placing artists in the classrooms to teach and perform. Today, Arts Outreach has grown into a collaboration of over 70 talented and professional artists. Its mission of promoting the visual, literary and musical arts in the Santa Ynez and Los Alamos Valleys has grown stronger than ever with the help and support of the community, teachers, principals, and superintendents.

 

People Helping People youth counseling services (https://www.syvphp.org/programs-services/). People Helping People (PHP) provides a wide range of basic needs and support services to families and individuals in communities in the Santa Ynez Valley, Los Alamos, and surrounding areas.

 

Olga L. Reed School composting program (https://www.orcuttschools.net/olga-reed/). Olga L. Reed School is a rural, K-8 school with 175 students as of this writing. The school is a centerpiece of the small community of Los Alamos. Most parents work on the farms, ranches, and vineyards of Los Alamos, the nearby Santa Ynez Valley, and the Santa Maria Valley. The school plays a prominent role in community events such as the annual Old Days Celebration in late September and community initiatives such as the current effort to establish a community library on the Olga Reed campus.