Maddox (far right) is a middle schooler and has been enrolled in our program for over 6 years.  Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, he was a kindergartener living in Harlem who was facing a number of risk factors. Maddox  had sporadic school attendance, poor work habits, and low academic performance. Meetings with school teachers and counselors confirmed that he was a child at risk.

Once enrolled in our program, Maddox was paired with a full time, paid Youth Advocate (or “Friend”) who spent time with him in and out of the classroom each week. Over the years, the Friend demonstrated positive socialization skills and engaged him in activities to promote his social, emotional, and academic growth.  Because Maddox was living in an unstable and disruptive home life, our in-house Social Worker advocated to place him into a boarding school.  He is thriving there, is much more focused on schoolwork, and has made many friends.

This summer, while back in Harlem, Maddox is spending time with his Friend again while also attending our academic summer camp to get him up-to-speed with basic literacy skills. Studies consistently indicate that children who are not reading at grade level by the time they reach the third grade will be perpetually behind later in life; it is essential that this gap is closed now before Maddox reaches high school.

Thanks to your donation, Maddox and children like him are able to enjoy the summer while also working on academics! Our summer classroom is stocked with activities that are both fun and challening for him.  We are thrilled that he will return to boarding school with a stronger academic base–his caring and outgoing nature ensures that Maddox has a bright future ahead!

Six-year old Jaclyn (top row, right) is one of the youngest “Achievers” at Friends of the Children NY.  She was assessed this past year in her kindergarten classroom at one of our five partnership schools in Harlem.  Like all of the children invited to enroll, she was deemed “at-risk” according to number of factors.  She was at the bottom of her class for academic performance and often demonstrated disruptive behavior. Because of her unstable home life, she spends most of her time at her grandmom’s place, where she gets more consistent support. Her older sister has also been a big help.

As a new addition to our program, Jaclyn has been paired with a full-time paid Youth Advocate (her “Friend”).  The role of the Friend is to provide on-going stability to Jaclyn and model positive socialization skills. The Friend will see Jaclyn one to two times every week both in and out of the classroom.  She will have this support system for the next 12 years until she graduates high school.

Thanks to your donation, Jaclyn and other Achievers like her are eating healthy meals and snacks at our academic summer camp. When the Achievers arrive at the Friends Place in the morning, they are often hungry and ready to eat. As a part of the summer program, we offer daily meals that include meat, vegetables, and fruit. Full meals teach the Achievers not to rely on snacking to fill their hunger.

Thanks for your generosity, and for helping us fulfill our mission of changing the destinies of the most vulnerable children in New York City!

Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, an early intervention program located in New York City, Natasha was a kindergartener living in Harlem who was facing a number of risk factors. She was a shy recluse, and had a difficult time interacting and socializing with peers in her kindergarten class.  Meetings with school teachers and counselors confirmed that she was a child at risk.

Once Natasha enrolled in the Friends of the Children NY program, her dedicated “Friend” successfully advocated for her placement into a school that better fit her needs.  Although Natasha was reluctant to try new things, Natasha’s Friend believed sports would be a positive outlet for her, and enrolled her in local taekwondo classes.  The classes have proven to be the spark Natasha needed to gain more self-confidence.  She continues to love her taekwondo classes, and has started to engage in other activities as well.  She is looking forward to attending a sports camp this summer, where she will be playing soccer and golf, and learning about nature.

Thanks to donations like yours, Natasha’s Friend was able to enroll her in taekwondo classes and other activities that promote positive socialization.  Natasha continues to pursue these classes because of the dedication and support of her Friend. She is now happier in school and living a healthier life, and our services will stay with her until she has graduated from high school.  Natasha’s path has been redirected by a Friend’s devotion–and the compassionate donors like you who reached out to help!

Thank you from Friends of the Children NY

You made a real difference in someone’s life!  Caleb has been with Friends of the Children NY for 9 years. His family emigrated to the United States when he was a toddler, and we selected Caleb to be in our program because his home life was in constant  flux, and cultural differences made it hard for him to make friends and be active in school.  Furthermore, he was often bullied, and rarely defended himself against peers.  Meetings with school counselors confirmed that Caleb was a child at risk.

Over the years, Caleb’s advocates, or “Friends,” have engaged him in outings and activities that promote his social, emotional, and academic growth. He loves basketball, and his Friends helped enroll him in various afterschool programs like the Bombsquad Basketball in Harlem. He has proven to be an exceedingly bright, inquisitive, and motivated student–there is no doubt that he is college bound.  In addition to the ongoing support of his Friends, Caleb has enjoyed being in summer camps and other activities throughout the years. Recently, he has become active in our college workshops and career panels.

Thanks to your donation, Caleb participates in Regents Test Prep workshops on a weekly basis at the Friends Place. We are proud of Caleb and his accomplishments, and we know many wonderful things lie ahead for him! Thank you!

Tiana has been with Friends of the Children NY for 10 years during which we have witnessed her transformation from an introverted kindergartener to a bright and sociable 11th grader.

Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, Tiana was a kindergartener in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors. In her case, she was bullied by her sisters and classmates. She was often late to school and almost never completed her daily homework. Meetings with school counselors confirmed that Tiana was a child at-risk.

Over the years, Tiana’s advocate, “the Friend,” has engaged her in outings and activities that promote her social, emotional, and academic growth. Nowadays, she can often be found at the Friends Place, especially on Fridays and Saturdays, where she drops-in and participates in regular activities with the Adolescent Program.

She has become a very strong student in recent years and we are thrilled to see her taking initiative and pursuing the Regents Exams. Thanks to your donation, Tiana’s has been participating in Regents Test Prep workshops in the Living Environment on a weekly basis. Her determination indicates that she will complete whatever task she aims to accomplish, and we are looking forward to celebrating when she passes the exam! Thank you!

Nicolas has been with Friends of the Children NY for 9 years. Like all of the children invited into our program, Nicolas was a first grader in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors. Even though he was a bright kid, he was exceedingly shy at school and experiencing trauma at home. He was starting to shut down and disengage when we met him.

Over the years, Nicolas’s advocates, or “Friends,” have engaged him in outings and activities that promote his social, emotional, and academic growth. He is interested in basketball, and we have helped enroll him in various afterschool and summer programs, such as Bombsquad Basketball, that have helped him focus on exceling in his passions. He is excited about pursuing college and maintains an interest in sports management. Our staff has taken him to visit a couple of college campuses.

Thanks to your donation, Nicolas participates in Regents Test Prep workshops on a weekly basis and will be taking the Living Environment test very soon. We are proud of Nicolas and his accomplishments and can’t wait to see what lies ahead for him! Thank you!

Danny has been with Friends of the Children NY for 10 years during which we have witnessed his transformation from a socially recluse kindergartener to a warm and generous 11th grader. Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, Danny was a kindergartener in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors. Although he was a bright kid, he was bullied and had a difficult time interacting with his classmates. Meetings with counselors confirmed that Danny was a child at-risk.

Over the years, Danny’s advocate, “the Friend,” has engaged him in outings and activities that promote his social, emotional, and academic growth. Like many adolescent boys, he is interested in sports and is a huge basketball fan. He also likes to read. He has been very active with our afterschool program, and consistently drops into the Friends Place to participate in activities with other teens in our Adolescent Program.

Thanks to your donation, Danny participates in Regents Test Prep workshops on a weekly basis and he will be taking the Geometry and Living Environment tests very soon. We are proud of Danny and his accomplishments and can’t wait to see what his future has in store for him! Thank you Randy!

Jayla is our first high school graduate at Friends of the Children NY!  She has been with the program for over 11 years, and we feel fortunate to have ushered her towards this juncture in her life with a promising plan for her future.

Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, Jayla was a kindergartener in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors. She was illiterate at the time when the rest of her classmates were starting to read and write. She was not interested or engaged in the classroom, and she would often lose focus and become sassy as a result. Meetings with school teachers and counselors confirmed that Jayla was a child at-risk.

Over the years, Jayla’s advocates, “the Friends,” have engaged her in outings and activities that promote her social, emotional, and academic growth. Further, we worked closely with her a few years ago to initiate the process of transferring her to a high school that better fits her needs and interests after she had a rough start in her new school. She is now excelling and is heading off to BMCC in the fall. She is interested in pursuing a degree in nursing.

Thanks to your donation, Jayla’s participates in Regents Test Prep workshops on a weekly basis. We are so proud of Jayla. Congratulations, graduate! And thank you for your generous gift!

Kiana has been with Friends of the Children NY for three years. Like all of the children invited into the program, Kiana was a kindergartener in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors: she was often bullied by her classmates she was at the bottom of her class in academic achievement.  Meetings with school teachers and counselors confirmed that Kiana was a child at-risk.

Since she has been enrolled in Friends of the Children NY, her advocate (Ms. Joann) has sat with Kiana regularly in the classroom to address the issues that led us to select her in the first place. And Kiana has improved her reading and math skills with the help of our Afterschool Program. Outside of the classroom, Kiana is outgoing and creative and always willing to try new things.  Once we took her to see a Taekwondo class, she begged Ms. Joann to join.  She is currently enrolled in the classes and is happily moving forward with this new hobby!

Because of your donation, Kiana and children like her are given the opportunity to experience a whole new world outside of their neighborhood and school.  Thank you for your support of her!

Noreen has been with Friends of the Children NY for 10 years during which we have witnessed her transformation from a combative child to a leader and academic ace as an 11th grader.

Like all of the children invited into Friends of the Children NY, Noreen was a kindergartener in Harlem who faced a number of risk factors: She often fought with classmates and had anger management issues. Her father was in and out of the hospital and mom was not around. Meetings with school teachers and counselors confirmed that Noreen was a child at-risk.

Over the years, Noreen’s advocate “Friend” has engaged her in outings and activities that promote her social, emotional, and academic growth. She is active in our adolescent program, and has recently gone to trapeze school, the ropes course, and visited college campuses with the program. She is excelling in school and is college bound.

Thanks to your donation, Noreen’s participates in Regents Test Prep workshops in Geometry and Global Studies on a weekly basis. We are so proud of her progress and can’t wait to see what lies ahead for her!