Parents
Organize Health Fair at Pleasant Grove
Our parents
are learning to take their health seriously—and they’re spreading the news! Avance-Dallas parents from Pleasant Grove
organized a health fair to promote healthy practices, and 200 parents and
children from the community attended and got a wellness boost.
The health fair was held on Saturday, February 27,
and it featured eight exhibit tables for attendees to receive resources,
connect with agencies, and get screened for common conditions. The exhibits
included diabetes screening, blood pressure and cholesterol testing, CHIP
(Children’s Health Insurance Program), Medicare, a local clinic, a day spa giving
demonstrations about exercise, Census 2010, and Avance-Dallas.
Rosa, the parent who organized the whole event and
all the collaborating agencies, titled the project, “For the Benefit of the
Community.” She described her thoughts about the event afterward:
“I’m happy that in the end I got to help a lot of
people. That was my purpose all along, to help the community. After three
months of hard work, making calls, looking for locations, visiting
organizations—and feeling nervous about the whole thing!—the health fair actually
became a reality.
“I’m thrilled! I don’t have the right words to
express myself. I love to help people, and all this happened thanks to the
fabulous Avance program and my
teachers Claudia and Luzma. With Luzma’s encouragement and help I accomplished
my goal. Everything went so well that I want to hold this event every year!”
As Rosa’s words and the health fair itself
demonstrate, Avance-Dallas is
not an end in itself. It’s a launching point. Parents learn first to improve
their own homes and then gain the confidence to go out and strengthen their
community. With active local leaders like these, Dallas has a solid hope for
its future.
Child
Abuse Prevention Month
April is
National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and our Bachman Lake parents launched an
awareness campaign with a five-mile walk along the Bachman Lake Trail.
The event took
place on the morning of March 26, 2010, and the Avance-Dallas
parents titled the event, “I love my children, and I take care of my children.”
All the walkers wore blue ribbons to show their commitment to protecting
children.
Awareness
events will continue as our HOPE Program Case Workers visit each Avance-Dallas Parent Education class to
talk about the meaning of the blue ribbons. They will define what falls under
the umbrella of child abuse and neglect and will discuss how to report such
incidents.
Avance Moms Make
Piñatas with Elderly
Parents from
our Born Learning Program in Pleasant Grove spent three weeks in March with the
elderly at the Catholic Charities of Dallas’s Brady Center in East Dallas.
Together they made piñatas and shared life in a meaningful joining of worlds.
One of our
parents, Rosa (not the same Rosa who did the health fair), took the initiative in
developing this project. She went to St. Edward Catholic Church to see if her
group could serve the elderly people at the church. Through this encounter, she
connected with the “Elderly Program” of the Brady Center next door.
Rosa and the
other Avance moms shared breakfast
and lunch with the elderly at the church (food donations come from local
restaurants). And they also spent time at the Brady Center on a joint project
making piñatas. Rosa hoped the elderly would find the project to be both a
productive and enjoyable activity. Everyone had a great time making good memories
together!
Pleasant
Grove Parent Educator Luzma says that parents have suggested launching a joint
project with the Brady Center next year to market the piñatas that they will
make together. Proceeds would go back to the “designers” by supporting the
Brady Center’s Elderly Program. Parents are also considering a second project
of organizing a food collection for the church.
The parent
leadership aspect of our program is teaching parents to apply their creative skills
in projects that change their community. As this project demonstrates, our Pleasant
Grove parents are making a lasting difference by giving back through parent-led
initiatives.
Library
Transforms into an Adventurous Jungle
For one parent leadership project in March, Avance parents from Vickery Meadow
converted the Jack Lowe Sr. Elementary School library into a jungle, promoting
reading by stimulating children’s imagination.
The moms came up with the project on their own and
went to the school librarian to see if she would like for them to decorate the
library as a jungle. She encouraged them to bring their idea to life.
The Avance-Dallas
parents worked every day for two weeks to create an engaging environment for
children. Children now enjoy the jungle atmosphere as they explore new worlds
through books. Our Vickery Meadow parents used their creativity and exercised
new leadership skills to promote education and better their community.
Make an
Avance Ripple!
The ripple
effect of one active person can change dozens of lives. Make a ripple in your
community by attending one of our upcoming Avance-Dallas
tours to promote community awareness:
The tours
will also feature Avance moms
sharing how the program impacted their families. Bring a friend to spread the
news about Avance-Dallas!