TURN IT AROUND
Family & Friends Newsletter:
February 2023

The purpose of this newsletter is to highlight our amazing youth leaders and all of the activities taking place in the community that they are involved in.

We hope to further engage the mentors and adults in these young people's lives and are available to parents and guardians to answer any questions about our programming. If you need assistance regarding your youth, please feel free to reach out to our Youth Program Coordinators Mswati Hanks and Zaire Richardson.
Black History Month
As Mswati always says...Black History is American History. 🙌🏻🙌🏼🙌🏽🙌🏾🙌🏿

Spoken Word performance of “Panther” by Mswati Hanks. We implore you to take a name or concept from this piece and research it. There’s so much more to Black History than what’s taught during the month of February! Thanks for joining us in celebration and solidarity every month of the year. 
Collage Art
We continued our collage art with TIA this month. We can't wait to share the final products with you soon!
Love Jars
One of our favorite traditions is making "Love Jars" - jars filled with notes from peers and staff to share what they like or appreciate about that person! We always appreciate taking time as a group to say kind words to one another; and the jar is a great way to keep those positive affirmations close by.
TIA JR Highlights: Art Unit
TIA JR is perfecting the last touches to their artwork. Many of them found beauty in the process, even when they were struggling! This unit has been so helpful in helping ignite their talents, as we prepare for an upcoming talent show fundraiser in May...scroll down for more info!
Charlestown Girls Basketball Senior Night
TURN IT AROUND showed up and showed out in celebration of senior Ari's last home basketball game! We're so proud of you! Shoutout to Elsie and Stacy as well who played their hearts out. Join us in supporting our CTown athletes no matter the sport.
Special Announcement...Save The Date!
We will be holding our first TIA JR Fundraiser and Talent Show, with performances by youth, artwork, and more! Stay tuned for more details.
Race Dialogues
Join us on Tuesday, March 21st at 5:30pm for our monthly Race & Equity Discussion. This series explores important topics about the impact of race, policing in urban settings, and equity. It is open to all members of the Charlestown community and the general public. Please note meetings are indoors at 10 Green Street.
 
This forum is being co-sponsored by the Charlestown Coalition, Turn It Around Youth Program, Councilor Gigi Coletta and her team.
February Birthdays
Happy February Birthdays to Aidan, Gigi and Caiden Collier!
TURN IT AROUND Alumni Advice
Introducing a new way to highlight your alumni...an advice column!

Check back here monthly for all kinds of advice on topics like education, getting a job, navigating #adulting and more!
TURN IT AROUND:
Youth of the Month

The Turn It Around Youth of the Month for February is Almir Basic. Almir is a freshman at Charlestown High, and is an amazing visual artist. Almir attends every TIA meeting. He is also in attendance for anything extra we do as a group, including our monthly Race Dialogues. Whenever he speaks, he is thoughtful and insightful, and shows maturity beyond his years. I feel like we’re just scratching the surface of what a special young man he is. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for Almir in Turn It Around!!

-Mswati Hanks,
Youth Program Coordinator
TURN IT AROUND JUNIOR:
Youth of the Month
We would like to congratulate Malik Jones on being TIA JR Youth Of The Month! Malik has always been a big character in group, but his infectious personality and strong influence make him a true leader. Being a elder member in the group, he understands that he sets an example on what is expected from a TIA JR member -he has gone above and beyond to literally turn it around (pun intended) and be a star player. Malik had big shoes to fill coming in as his older brothers are both TIA alum but he has set himself apart and shown he is just as much of a force to be reckoned with! 


-Zaire Richardson,
Youth Program Coordinator
Thank you for helping raise the next generation
of community leaders!