PRESS RELEASE

Spaghetti Bridges, Improv Workshops, and Yoga: Not just your average week at Juvenile Hall.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — June 23, 2008 — While the children of San Francisco enjoyed the warm sun and first week of summer vacation, little changed in the lives of the youth detained at Juvenile Hall. During the one-week break between the end of the school year and start of summer school, City Youth Now sponsored four action packed days of programs utilizing staff and volunteers to make this week a little more special. The detained youth wore many “hats” to become engineers, yogis, yoginis, and thespians as laughter was heard throughout the corridors of Juvenile Hall.

Detained youth as engineers—On Tuesday and Friday, the staff at City Youth Now equipped with 40 packages of uncooked spaghetti, wax paper, and 140 ounces of Elmer’s glue challenged 70 detained teenagers to create the strongest bridge on their unit. A somewhat abstract arts and crafts project immediately became engaging as it presented engineering challenges, forcing the somewhat solitary youth to collaborate with their team to build the strongest pasta bridge. Even the unit counselors became involved and helped the youth brainstorm to come up with the best design strategy as they came to the conclusion that triangles and strong connecting corners were the best route. After two days of hard work, the bridges were put to the test. The youth were eager to watch to see if their bridge would stand stronger then the next, in anticipation of the pizza party promised to the winning team!

Detained youth as yogi and yogini—On Wednesday, the yoga instructors from our weekly yoga class on the girls unit united to teach an all day yoga extravaganza! City Youth Now and The Art of Yoga Projected collaborated to provide all 130 detained youth, including maximum security, with a 45 minute yoga workout. While the young women were eager to have yoga two days that week, the boys were reluctant as they took their place at a yoga matt for what they thought was “girl’s stretching.” However, these young men were soon changing their opinion of the yoga practice as the breathing and yoga poses proved to be a challenging and intriguing workout. The room grew silent as every youth made their best attempt to achieve the pose. At the end of the strenuous workout, the group went into relaxation pose where they were forced to calm their bodies, take deep breaths and find inner peace. The room grew so silent you could hear the inhales and exhales. All of the detained youth were quick to request the return of yoga!

Detained youth as thespian—On Thursday, City Youth Now teamed up with thespians from bay area colleges and BATS improvisation school to lead improvisation workshops on the units at Juvenile Hall. The youth were required to engage their entire bodies and minds to play theatre games that made put them in ridiculous and vulnerable poses, making everyone laugh. The youth made the workshop their own by telling stories one word at a time, making pictures with their bodies, playing mirror and shadow, and participating in other teamwork activities. While they initially approached the “silly” games with caution and teenage insolence, by the end every participant had dropped his guard and was laughing.

Overall, the week was a great success. Once again, City Youth Now met the challenge and filled in the gap by providing programs to fill the slow summer days at Juvenile Hall. Even if for just a brief moment, the detained youth were able to be out of their cells, participating in programs, and realizing that they are worth the time and attention that City Youth Now and its volunteers provide.

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Press Contact:
Brittany Heinrich
Executive Director
City Youth Now
brittany@cityyouthnow.org

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