https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2017/08/local-youthbuild-leaders-take-on-national-roles/

August 31, 2017

Submitted photo YouthBuild North Central students William Gartmann, left, and Sharell Harmon have been elected to national posts in the program’s National Young Leaders Council.

ELKINS — Two students from YouthBuild North Central in Elkins have been elected to the program’s National Young Leaders Council.

The National Young Leaders Council is the peer-elected student leadership body for the YouthBuild USA program. Sharell Harmon, the body’s new president, and William Gartmann, the new treasurer, will serve the next three years representing YouthBuild members from 260 YouthBuild programs in 46 states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands.

Harmon is originally from Manassas, Virginia. At the age of 23, she moved her young family to Elkins and enrolled at YouthBuild North Central. At YouthBuild, she excelled in all aspects of the program and quickly found herself in leadership roles.

Harmon has served on the Young Leaders Council for three years and has been an AmeriCorps Service member for more than two years. Additionally, she has volunteered and served her community with YouthBuild, Catholic Charities and AmeriCorps Life Bridge, and is currently working with Preservation Alliance of West Virginia.

“I am proud to be able to encourage and inspire other youth to take on the challenges of their future,” Harmon said. She hopes to be a good example for her children and to create a better future for her family and all of West Virginia.

Gartmann, an Elkins native, joined YouthBuild in February to earn his diploma and further his education.

“YouthBuild helped me earn my diploma,” Gartmann said. “I could not go to culinary school without completing that first step.”

As a member of YouthBuild and AmeriCorps, Gartmann has served hundreds of hours with organizations and projects in our community, including Catholic Charities, the Randolph County Humane Society, Camp Pioneer, a tree restoration project at Old Spruce, and various efforts to support a local skate park.

Gartmann is looking forward to completing YouthBuild with an AmeriCorps education award that will assist him in pursuing his education in culinary arts.

Michelle Phares, the program manager at YouthBuild North Central, said, “I am so proud of these young people. They have dedicated hundreds of volunteer hours in our community and that work has been recognized nationally. Sharell and William have pledged many more hours of service over the next three years to improve the lives of youth across the country. It has been years since rural youth have served on the National Youth Leaders Council.”

YouthBuild is a national, nonprofit organization that assists low-income young adults in becoming responsible members in their communities by providing education, marketable job skills, and leadership training.

In addition to earning an education, job skills and leadership skills, students will have many opportunities to volunteer with various organizations and projects and to assist the Randolph County Housing Authority in building affordable housing in our community.

For more information about YouthBuild North Central, please call 304-637-9008 or visit youthbuildncwv.org.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2017/07/youthbuild-students-speak-to-rotary/

July 18, 2017

By Brooke Binns

ELKINS — Two YouthBuild North Central students spoke to Elkins Rotarians on Monday about projects they have been working on this year.

Program Manager Michelle Phares said that since beginning YouthBuild in February, the group of enrolled students have completed more than 3,000 hours of service.

Sawyer Summerfield and Molly Lipscomb, two currently enrolled students, gave a brief overview of the projects that they and their classmates have been involved in.

In addition to group exercises and team-building activities, the group has performed various labor-involved tasks around the community.

Lipscomb said they consider Highland Park, where the YouthBuild center is located, to be their home community.

“We’re located in Highland Park, so as a team, we respect our community,” Lipscomb said.

In this area, students are proud to assist their neighbors with tasks, keeping garbage picked up and mowing lawns.

In addition to Highland Park, students also performed service at Glendale Park, where they worked to remove a fence around the skate park area.

“Our goal was to rebuild the fence,” Summerfield said. “What we’re doing next is we’re going to go through and build some skate ramps to add to it.”

Summerfield said that he enjoys time spent at Camp Pioneer doing outside yard work.

“My first project was setting up a walkway with railroad ties to make it more presentable,” Summerfield said.

Summerfield added they are able to offer a great deal of volunteer time to Camp Pioneer because of the many events that take place there.

Working with Melodee Price and West Virginia Make it Shine, students have been involved in a variety of service projects, including cleaning around river banks, railroad tracks, local businesses and other areas.

“West Virginia Make it Shine, we also joined with them and Melodee Price to help bring community the pride by volunteering and giving back to our little town,” Lipscomb said.

Another significant project that Phares said students have been involved with is located in the town of Old Spruce, an abandoned timber town in Pocahontas County.

Here, students have planted 2,700 trees as part of a restoration project for wildlife by helping to restore the stream and provide shade to lower water temperatures for trout to be able to re-enter this area.

This project was led by the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources and West Virginia University. Phares added that other organizations, including the Canaan Valley Institute, were involved in the project.

YouthBuild North Central is dedicated to providing an atmosphere that promotes growth, respect and dignity to all who they serve with love and appreciation.

The program offers young men and women the opportunity to earn money while gaining hands-on experience through building quality houses. The work YouthBuild participants complete also is reinforced with classroom instruction, job shadowing and personal guidance. Out-of-school youth ages 16 to 24 are eligible to apply. The program typically runs between six and 10 months.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2016/12/14-graduate-youthbuild-program/

December 2, 2016

By Brooke Binns, InterMountain

December 2016 graduates from YouthBuild North Central celebrated with family, friends and local partners on Thursday afternoon during a ceremony for the class. From left, front row, are Gabriel Buckley-Collett, Taylor Zirkle, Samantha Phares, Allyson Summerfield and Sierra Buckley; and back row, Zachary Flanagan, Tristan Gooden, Nathaniel Wilson, Kaden Shipman, Hailee Nicholson and Madison Scott. Graduates not present include Nick Gartmann, Steven George and Chevy McDaniel.

ELKINS — After several months of hard work and numerous, positive accomplishments, 14 students gathered with family and friends on Thursday as they were recognized as graduates of YouthBuild North Central.

YouthBuild Program Manager Michelle Phares said, “We asked you to trust us with no proof that you should or could — thank you for trusting us. And then we asked you to do the most difficult thing that can be asked of a person — we asked you to change and grow. As we all know, growth and change is not comfortable or graceful.”

Two students in the December 2016 graduating class shared testimonies that expressed their thanks for the YouthBuild program in addition to specific experiences that each of the students had during their time in the program.

Quoting a poem, Madison Scott said, “The struggle means, no matter how hard things are, you haven’t given up. The hustle is when you earn your accomplishments and wake up everyday proud of who you are.”

Each of the testimonies touched on the changes that students saw occurring in their lives as a result of life lessons they gained through the YouthBuild program.

Nathaniel Wilson, left, celebrates during YouthBuild’s graduation ceremony Thursday afternoon.

“What I’ve done is who I am, but who I am is what I do now. I won’t let up or cease to fight, this time I plan on doing it right. What is right lies within me. I’m learning to appreciate the struggle for it would be hard to find the joy of accomplishment without it,” Scott said.

Taylor Zirkle offered a testimony that recognized the impact each YouthBuild staff member made on her life and how each of the individuals helped her to find motivation to do better.

“YouthBuild has helped me through so many mental and physical weaknesses,” Zirkle said.

In addition to Zirkle’s comments, many students thanked individual members of the YouthBuild staff for the impact that they made in their lives.

“It’s hard work, sweat, agony, tears and some cursing, but the result of that is amazing and life-changing,” Phares said.

The YouthBuild organization strives to give young adults the tools to get a good job and keep it. YouthBuild attempts to strengthen the educational backgrounds of young adults, teach marketable skills and entrepreneurship and instill leadership values that relate to home, work and community in order to assist young adults with becoming responsible members of the community.

Each of the graduates in the December 2016 completed an eight-month cycle, in which they did classwork and community service and construction work around the area.

Case Manager Jessica Gainer said, “By far, this group has expanded in our volunteer services. We’ve done more with this group than we have ever before.”

Since May of 2016, these 14 students completed 4,870 community service hours during their time with the YouthBuild program.

On behalf of Davis Health System, Foundation Director Mike Bell and Valerie Bright recognized students who volunteered many hours to the medical center.

“Including a couple of members of this class, six graduates of YouthBuild are now our co-workers,” Bell said.

In addition,  Jennifer “JJ” Johnson, coordinator of Youth Health Service’s Home Ties Strengthening Families Center, praised students for their hard work and progress throughout their time in the YouthBuild program.

“I have to say, I am very proud of these guys — they worked very hard for me and have been very open and very fun,” Johnson said.

YouthBuild North Central is dedicated to providing an atmosphere that promotes growth, respect and dignity to all who they serve with love and appreciation.

The program offers young men and women the opportunity to earn money while gaining hands-on experience through building quality houses. The work YouthBuild participants complete also is reinforced with classroom instruction, job shadowing and personal guidance. Out-of-school youth ages 16 to 24 are eligible to apply. The program typically lasts between six to 10 months.

“This is the end and it breaks my heart to say goodbye, but I will always recommend YouthBuild,” Zirkle said.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2016/10/youthbuild-helps-with-upgrades-at-erec/

October 22, 2016

ELKINS — As the facility has seen many changes in recent months, additional upgrades are taking place at the Elkins Recreation and Events Center this week.

With the help of YouthBuild North Central, EREC made upgrades to its facility this week by upgrading the roofing on a portion of the building.

EREC Facility Manager Chris Lee said, “We have a good amount of moisture coming into the building on this end because of the existing roof, so this should solve that problem. We’re really happy that we’re able to get this piece of the puzzle figured out.”

The group from individuals who are a part of YouthBuild worked throughout the week in effort to complete the roof repair project at EREC.

“They started the project yesterday and went ahead and laid the wood down so they could come in today and put the metal roofing on,” Lee said.

YouthBuild North Central Construction Supervisor Randy Cunningham said, “These guys really enjoy coming out and learning and being able to spend time outdoors.”

Cunningham expressed the importance of gaining job skills through hands-on experience and the process that YouthBuild members are able to go through in order to do so.

YouthBuild students are able to work toward a number of different certifications during their time in the program, including carpentry, electrical, plumbing and landscaping.

Cunningham explained the certification processes are part of an eight-month program that is offered to each of the students.

During the certification process, students from YouthBuild North Central are able to work year-round on various city projects that YouthBuild completes or takes part in as a way to build on their experience and continue to improve their hands-on job skills.

Since the opening of the facility in May of this year, EREC can be utilized for conferences, weddings, class reunions, meetings, concerts, different types of craft shows, receptions, birthdays, youth programs and sporting events.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2016/04/thirteen-students-graduate-from-youthbuild-north-central/

April 15, 2016

ELKINS – After dedicating months of time and effort, 13 graduates were honored by YouthBuild North Central Thursday afternoon.

The graduates completed an eight-month cycle, in which they did classwork, community service, and construction work.

Each of the graduates completed more than 100 hours of community service and received certifications in various areas such as first aid, CPR and AED.

Graduating students include Sara Briggs, Jessica Collins, Robert Collins, Joe Cummins, Nicholas Gartmann, Kyrsten Himes, Nevan Himes, Jasmine Huff, Courtney Salisbury, Scott Shank, Jonathon Summerfield, Shayla Sperling and Jeremiah Wilson.

YouthBuild North Central is dedicated to providing an atmosphere that promotes growth, respect, and dignity to all that they serve with love and appreciation.

The organization strives to give young adults the tools to get a good job and keep it. YouthBuild attempts to strengthen the educational backgrounds of young adults, teach marketable skills and entrepreneurship and instill leadership values that relate to home, work and community in order to assist young adults with becoming responsible members of the community.

YouthBuild offers young men and women the opportunity to earn money while gaining hands-on experience through building quality houses. The work YouthBuild participants complete also is reinforced with classroom instruction, job shadowing and personal guidance. Out-of-school youth ages 16 to 24 are eligible to apply. The program typically lasts between six to 10 months.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2015/10/participants-praise-youthbuild-during-stop-at-elkins-rotary/

October 20, 2015

ELKINS – Two YouthBuild participants talked about how the program has positively affected their lives during Monday’s Elkins Rotary Club meeting.

Jessica Collins said she discovered the YouthBuild program after the stresses of public school started to take a toll on her mental health.

“Before I started (YouthBuild), I was in Elkins High School. I had to drop out because my anxiety got too bad. I couldn’t focus, every time I go to school I have panic attacks,” Collins said.

“What YouthBuild is about, we build low income houses. They help us get our GED or job and work skills and we do a lot of community service,” she continued. “They really do change a lot of kids’ lives around. My older brother is in there, he joined recently and he’s changed a lot in a short amount of time.”

Collins plans to use the skills she developed in YouthBuild by going to college and furthering her education.

“What I’m planning to do after YouthBuild is going to Pierpont (Community and Technical College) where I can be a vet tech,” Collins said.

The second participant, Kyrsten Himes, outlined how she got involved in the YouthBuild program.

“When I was in my senior year of high school, I actually ended up graduating but I also got married so it made college basically impossible.”

“We were moving out, we were living on our own,” Himes said. “We had to make it on my wages at Subway and eventually I worked two jobs. (My husband) was working at YouthBuild while I was working the other two jobs. We were making it work. I paid $900 a month at the house I was living in.”

Himes said the YouthBuild program allowed her to better herself and her employment situation.

“When I got the opportunity to work at YouthBuild after (her husband) had graduated, they really did change my life,” Himes said. “I couldn’t afford to go to college, I couldn’t afford to get myself better. I would have ended up working fast food the rest of my life.”

Himes is preparing to join the med-tech program through YouthBuild and work toward becoming a nurse.

“YouthBuild has helped me get myself to a place where I could do all these things. I got accepted to college, I had a good GPA, I went to high school, I worked hard. I worked two jobs and went to high school, I got married before I even graduated,” Himes said. “So, it took a long time for me to get to the place where I was able to do these things and they are helping me get to a place where I need to be to straighten out my life.”

YouthBuild has served “at risk” youth in the community for 20 years and helps them obtain job skills that are important in finding and keeping employment. In Elkins, YouthBuild has served nearly 800 youth.

YouthBuild is funded by the Department of Labor and also receives a grant through AmeriCorps.

YouthBuild is located at 300 Boundary St. in Elkins. Additional information is available by calling 304-637-9008 or online at www.rchawv.org/youthbuild.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2015/08/youthbuild-honors-11-graduates/

August 14, 2015

ELKINS – Following months of hard work, 11 members of YouthBuild North Central attained their goal, gathering Thursday with their families and friends to celebrate their graduation.

The graduates completed an eight-month cycle, in which they did classwork, community service and construction work, including working on a three-unit apartment building for elderly disabled individuals in Valley Bend.

YouthBuild Program Manager Michelle Phares said she is exceptionally proud of this graduating class for all the hard work they put in, despite the elements.

“I will say that they have faced challenges that a lot of classes haven’t faced. They worked in January 2015 when it was sub-zero temperatures,” Phares said. “This class got here. When it was a state of emergency, some of them still showed up. We worked in below zero, we worked in blazing heat, they did it mostly without complaining. They did the construction portion of it, they do community service, they work at the Randolph County Humane Society, they walk dogs, they socialize cats, they hand out food at Catholic Charities, so they really get out there and they help the community. I am really proud of them.”

Phares also said the graduating students will be leaving the school with a full portfolio, ready to enter the work force.

“Some are studying to earn their TASC (formerly GED), they take the COMPASS (Placement) test, we do job readiness skills.” Phares said. “They leave here with a portfolio, they go and work with WorkForce, they do a professional resume, they apply for jobs through WorkForce and some of them do job shadowing so they have already been out on a job site.”

Phares said YouthBuild continues to assist these young adults even after they have graduated and become alumni, something she feels is very

important.

“Not only do we directly serve in the community but these young people are going to be our neighbors so I think it’s really important that we have our doors open, that we help them get their TASC and we help them get work skills,” Phares said. “Not only that, we’re open to them, our doors are open, after they graduate the program. We have an alumni program. Anybody that is struggling with anything, they need a connection to a community service, they maybe did not get their TASC while they are here but they want to come up and study, we help them with all those things.”

YouthBuild Senior Education Director Loren Fortney echoed the sentiments of Phares during the graduation, saying he felt the graduating students had done exceptionally.

“The staff up here is the best I’ve ever seen at what they are doing. The crew, the students, this has been an exceptional group of students. They have done everything we wanted them to,” Fortney said. “We have several of them that went out and they already have jobs. They have been working, some of them for weeks, some of them a month, some of them three or four months. They are just ready to move on in life.”

Those graduating Thursday include Brooke Lester, Derick Lukenbill, Sharell Harmon, Dillon Thorne, Caleb Himes, Kevin Hipp, Darius Humphrey, Mercedes Hart, Doug Caprio, Dale Wine and David Cathell.

YouthBuild has served “at risk” youth in the community for 20 years and helps them obtain job skills that are important in finding and keeping employment.

“Youth Build actually has been in Elkins for 20 years and we serve students who are at risk of not attaining work skills and further education so we work with young people that are 16 to 24 (years old),” Phares said. “We have an education component, we have a construction component and we have a med prep component where they can get a certificate to go work in the medical field here in Elkins.

“We also have a lot of community partners. We have an AmeriCorps grant so these young people are able to, if they complete 450 hours of community service, they get a $1,500 reward from AmeriCorps. Some of these young people are earning that today, some are still working towards it. They have a year to fulfill that contract.”

YouthBuild is funded by the Department of Labor and also receives a grant through AmeriCorps.

YouthBuild is located at 300 Boundary St. in Elkins. Additional information is available by calling 304-637-9008 or online at www.rchawv.org/youthbuild.

https://www.theintermountain.com/news/local-news/2015/01/alumni-praise-retiring-youthbuild-teacher/

January 16, 2015

ELKINS – Friends, family and colleagues of a retiring Randolph County YouthBuild instructor gathered at the program’s center near North School on Thursday to celebrate his retirement and offer their farewells.

Loren Fortney has taught high school equivalency classes to students enrolled in the program for 12 years, assisting in their completion of General Education Testing (GED) at a 73 percent achievement rate.

YouthBuild Program Manager Michelle Phares said in the 20 years the program has existed in Randolph County, Fortney has been one of the biggest reasons for its success.

“We have a lot of new students here who are just starting. We have students at this celebration that came to see Loren that have been gone for 10 years,” she said. “They keep coming back to see him because he doesn’t only teach them the G.E.D. He gets to know them and what they need and he helps them. When they have babies, or they get a job or they get married, they can’t wait to come up and tell him.”

Phares said Fortney has taught more than 600 students in his class throughout his tenure

“He is papa bear. What he’s meant to the organization is continuity because he’s been here through five program managers and two different grantees. He knows the program and (has kept) it going,” Phares said. “It’s been an honor working with him. He’s very caring.”

Fortney said he’s truly enjoyed his time with YouthBuild.

“It’s been 12 of the best years of my life. It’s been really nice to be here. People I’ve worked with are absolutely awesome. To all of our partners out in the community – thanks so much to them. They’re the bread and butter. They’re the people that just make things happen,” he said.

He said its been a treat to have the opportunity to influence so many of the region’s youth.

“They’re good kids. Some of them made it, some of them didn’t quite make it all the way through – but they all tried. They’re some of the best young people that there are. People talk about kids walking the street. These may have been those kids at one time but they got together enough to get here,” he said.

Fortney added he’s extremely proud of all the children he’s taught.

“I’m probably the only man in Elkins that has 700 kids. I go to Wal-Mart and I hear it from three or four different directions, ‘Hey Loren, Hey Loren,’” he said. “It’s just real nice for me to get to meet that many of the kids. I’m a good bit older than they are and they’ve kind of accepted me into their life and that makes me extremely happy.”

In his retirement, Fortney said he’s looking forward to spending time with his wife and doing things they want to do on their own time.

“It’s just time for me to do some things that I want to do. We’ve got a small farm. I want to build fence, I want to cut brush, I want to take care of my horses. I want to mow my yard and I want to do it on my schedule,” he said. “If I feel like mowing, I’ll mow. If I don’t want to mow, I won’t mow. If I want to go build a barn or clean out the stalls or something like that, that’s what I’m going to do.”

YouthBuild is a two-part, eight-month program that allows young people who’ve either dropped out of school and want to get their G.E.D. or want to improve their literacy and numeracy skills to do so while also learning how to build a house.

“They spend some time in the classroom and they spend time out on the job site building a house, usually for a low-income person, and there’s a stipend involved so it’s a paid education/ownership program. It’s a really cool program,” Karen Jacobson, executive director of the Randolph County Housing Authority, said.

The RCHA operates as the regional sponsor for the program.

According to it’s website, the goal of the program is to give young adults the tools to get a good job and keep it. YouthBuild works to develop the capacity of young adults to be responsible members of their families and communities by strengthening educational backgrounds, teaching marketable skills and entrepreneurship and instilling leadership values that relate to home, work and community.

“It can be a really crazy place to work but its also kind of a dream job for a teacher because most teachers really want to be able to connect to students one-to-one and really help them get where they want to go. Not a lot of teachers with classrooms full of 30 kids passing through every year get to be the one person that really makes a difference and Loren has been that one person,” Jacobson said. “He will be missed.”

Throughout the celebration, several former students approached Fortney to give him a hug and express their gratitude.

“There’s nothing special about what I do other than the fact I was just kinda here to ride herd on them and they finally figured out that an education is something they needed and they jumped right into and did it,” Fortney said.

Cliff Schoonover, president of the RCHA’s Board of Directors, disagreed with Fortney’s humble statement.

“I’ve watched him work – I’ve been here probably 10 years on the board and I (attribute) our success rate to him a lot. We’ve got a lot of good people, but I’ve watched him work with the kids… and I think that has brought the success rate up,” he said.

Officials said Youthbuild will kick off its first program of 2015 in late spring or early summer but a concrete date has not yet been set. To find out more about the program call 304-636-6495 or visit rchawv.org/youthbuild.html.