“Chester Youth Collaborative” Youth Excel

By Janet S. Riley Ford, MSW, LSW

Program Coordinator, Chester Youth Collaborative

Welcome to “The Bridge”, a bi-monthly newsletter developed to share information on the work of the Chester Youth Collaborative, a neighborhood-based youth development system created to enhance the quality of youth opportunities in the city of Chester.

This edition of “The Bridge” is dedicated to the accomplishments of our Chester youth. The youth named in this edition have displayed exemplary achievements. Besides being academically gifted, these young men and women are active participants in their families, communities and various youth-serving organizations. Many are advancing to higher education, while others just continue to shine. The recognition due to these youth is in accordance with the overall vision of the Collaborative, which is to promote a strong Chester community in which all youth reach their full potential and transition successfully into adulthood.

By promoting a “strong Chester community in which all youth reach their full potential,” the collaborative functions as a conduit for organizations, city and community entities to join forces and share resources that create a firm foundation for Chester youth to excel. It is a foundation that not only strengthens the agencies that comprise the collaborative, but one that provides a launch pad for youth leadership and growth. Such a foundation exposes Chester youth to a coordinated set of opportunities that prepares them to be the thinkers, doers and future leaders of their city and their world, ensuring a “successful transition into adulthood.”

With the support of family, community and quality youth programming, the will and determination of these young men and women will continue to propel them forward. The boundless potential of these youth is an illustration of the vitality inherent to the Chester community, for their accomplishments will continue to amplify the richness of Chester’s history and knowledge base. The undertakings of these youth are a proclamation that Chester has and will always be a place where success is not only possible but evident.

The responsibility of the Chester Youth Collaborative is to assist Chester youth in realization of their dreams. Our duty is to create a passageway that will minimize the obstacles encountered by Chester youth, while maximizing the opportunities available to them. Our charge is to leverage resources and create partnerships that will help multiply the number of Chester youth who will realize aspirations, ambitions and heights that exceed even their expectations.

Congratulations to our Chester Youth! Your efforts are noteworthy! Continue to strive for excellence in an effort to make certain that “What Chester Makes…continues to Make Chester.”

If you would like to be part of this group, please contact Ieasa Nichols, CYC Youth Council Coordinator, or Janet S. Riley Ford, CYC Program Coordinator, at (610) 497-7422.