What service projects has your chapter SAVE chapter conducted to help your community?

RESPONSES:

Here at Cortney Junior High School in Las Vegas, NV we have had a phenomenal first year as a S.A.V.E. Chapter. In the month of April we focused on National Child Abuse Prevention Month by holding a "Teddy's for Trauma" drive and collecting over 200 stuffed animals to be donated locally. A representative from Prevent Child Abuse Nevada (Provision of Prevent Child Abuse America) of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas was invited as a guest speaker at our meeting and we learned about the different types of abuse and how to prevent it. Our group was posted on http://nic.unlv.edu/pcan/pinwheels_for_prevention.html in an effort to promote their Pinwheels for Prevention campaign. In addition, our students were inspired by our courtyard sidewalk chalk display, "Take Steps to Stop Child Abuse." It was a truly emotional experience for the students of Cortney JHS. May activities will be focusing on "Eyes Wide Open: If you see something-Do Something" We will be giving weekly safety tips on staying safe at school, home and their community; specifically focusing on internet safety, street danger, weapons danger and community crime activities such as graffiti/tagging, suspicious activities in homes, and knowing your neighbors. ~ Christine Huerta, Counselor, Cortney JHS

The December Question of the Month: How will your SAVE chapter help the less fortunate this holiday season? What service projects will your SAVE chapter be conducting over the holidays?

RESPONSES:

The Cuthbertson SAVE chapter has encourage our students and staff to "adopt" a child from our angel tree and purchase them a gift. The angel tree is something our school does every year. There are several Christmas Trees around school and each ornament has a child and a desired gift. Anyone can take an ornament and buy the child a present. You drop off the gift, which is neatly wrapped, into a bin and they are distributed to the needy children in the area. It has always been a very successful program and I love seeing the whole school come together for a great cause. I believe showing kindness and a warm heart is the best holiday gift anyone can give! ~ Jessica Weber, Cuthbertson High School, Waxhaw, NC

During the Christmas holiday season, our SAVE group has been involved in several community efforts. The first thing we were involved in was helping with a can drive for our local food bank, at this time of year their need is so great. We asked each of are students to bring at least one can. In the end we had over 2,000 cans total. The next thing we got involved in was a coat drive. We take these to the local shelter for the homles. We had over 200 coat's donated. For the next project we adopted a family for Christmas from the gateway women & childrens shelter, what was deferent this year is that we took on 4 families, with the help of our local EMS. We were able to get all these children and there moms food form Christmas. To end the month, last night we volunteered out time and worked the community Christmas party at the local boys & girls club. Our group helped the kids get into a bounce house and an obstecal course that they provided. They also got their picture's made with Santa and we helped make Christmas stockings for them. To end the month, we are helping the 2nd and 3rd graders at school get ready to sing at the local nursing home. We have all enjoyed giving back to the community. ~ Brady Ledbetter, Ira High School, TX

This year, my chapter will be hosting a christmas party/dinner. We want to do it sort of like a buffet. So each of our families will make a dish and use it. We will charge 4 bucks a plate and donations will go towards Catholic Charities. ~ Shadezja Garrett, North Chicago High School, North Chicago, IL

Each year during the holiday season, the Highland School of Technology SAVE chapter does a penny challenge. We have a contest between the four grade levels to see who can bring in the most money. Pennies and dollars are positive points for your grade and silver change is negative points for your grade. This activity is not all just about fun and friendly compitition between grade levels, ALL money raised goes to help a needy family. Our local Department of Social Services gives us the general information on a family (age, gender, and number of family members in the family) and we take the money raised to buy the Christmas for the family. This year we collected a total of $188.20 to help make this families Christmas as happy and memorable as it can be. From National SAVE and the Higland School of Technology SAVE chapter, we would like to wish you all a wonderful and safe holiday. ~ Jaclyn Morton, Highland School of Technology, Gastonia, NC

For the sixth year in a row,Mukwonago High School SAVE held a "penny war" where first hour classes compete. The room with the most pennies wins. The best part is that you can sabotage other classes with your non-penny coins and bills, which subtract from their penny totals. That's where the real money is raised. Students love sabotaging other classes, as do teachers. We have raised hundreds of dollars to donate to domestic violence shelters and other community programs. This year, we donated to the local Child Abuse Prevention fund. ~ Sarah Dianich, Mukwonago High School, Mukwonago, WI

RESPONSES FROM 2010 to 2011:

My SAVE chapter annually makes blankets to donate to the Battered Women and Children's Shelter. The holiday season is a great time to help others, but there are great service project ideas for any time of year! ~ Casey Story, Garner High School, Garner, NC

The types of service projects we are doing for the holidays is we are making holiday safety posters on things like fireplace safety, heaters, cooking, setting up the tree, and decorating the exterior of the house. Just things that we know that people can get hurt by. ~ Shadezja Garrett, North Chicago High School, North Chicago, IL

Allen Middle SAVE Chapter under the supervision of our Resource Officer Ms. E.Y. Smith collected over 1, 933 cans of food for URBAN MINISTRY OF GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA, for Thanksgiving 2010 This huge project was done thanks to students, faculty and staff. Also, SAVE is collecting Toys For Tots for the US Marines and we have already filled 5 boxes of toys. Allen is well known for giving and helping out in the community. At Allen Middle, we are proud of SAVE and its members. ~ Rose Marie Rodriguez, Spanish Teacher, Allen Middle School, Greensboro, NC

My S.A.V.E. chapter has done multiple things for the less fortunate this season. One thing we did is a coat drive, altogether we collected over 150 coats and donated them to 2 different organizations in Snyder. Another big thing we did was adopt 2 children from the Gateway Battered Women and Children Shelter. We adopted a brother and sister and bought them over 400 dollars worth of toys and the mother over 100 dollars worth of food. The National Association of Students Against Violence Everywhere wishes everyone a blessed and safe holiday season! ~ J. P. Wilson, Ira High School, Ira, TX

The Ira SAVE Chapter has been involved in many different pojects this holiday season to help the less fortunante, and victims of doemsetic violence. We started off the holiday season with a coat drive in our community and school to donate coats that were not being used to the local shelter and the local domestic violence shelter to help during this winter, it was a great success we were able to gather over 150 coats and jackets to take to them. Our service project during all of this was we ask our 4th grade class to get involved in giving back to the involerment by collecting coke cans and learning about recycling this was a great success as well as a way to earn money to put in what our SAVE group has now name as our Community Porjects Fund. Together with the students and staff in our school we gathered over 2000lbs of cans in one month! The students and staff felt this was such a great way to help the enviorment and give back that we are going to keep this going for the rest of the year. As for what our SAVE group is doing to help the less fortunante this holiday season, we went to the local shelter and we have "adopted" a family, to buy Christmas for , we raised over $600.00 dollars for the family. My students were so humbled to find out that the children could only as for three things and only expect to get one of those three. I impressed upon my students that this should make all of us very thankful and want to do more for those that have less than we do. We decided that what we wanted to get everything on there list so we set a goal and we did it as well as , getting their mother gifts. The shelter told us the moms are not usually bought for but we wanted to do this we were able to buy her several things, and get them enough food for a month. One of my students put it best by saying "Katrina, It just makes you want to cry you feel so good I don't think I have ever felt this good at Christmas". When my student told me this I cried, to me this is what SAVE is about letting students know we have to be the outreach to make a difference in those live of the people who have been, hurt, who can’t find the way, who think there is no way or think that they have lost their way. Because thru all of us we can help show them how much we all care. From Ira SAVE Group we would like to wish you all a very blessed and Merry Christmas. ~ Katrina Reynolds, Ira Save Advisor, Ira High School, Ira, TX

Responses from December 2009:

We did not get to participate this year in donations, but in years past we have helped provide meals and toys to children in the school that may need it. ~ Hannah Froh, Chandler High School, Chandler, OK.

The West Charlotte SAVE Chapter is helping the less fortunate by volunteering at the homeless shelter this winter break and trying to go caroling to uplift the spirits of those in nearby neighborhoods. ~ John Scott, National SAVE Youth Advisory Board

For our holiday service project, the Mukwonago High School SAVE chapter held its fourth annual Penny War. First hour classes competed against their peers for a breakfast treat. The class with the most pennies wins, but students can sabotage other class es with non-penny coins and bills, which subtract from their penny totals. We raised almost $600 this year, which was used to purchase Christmas gifts for the children and teens at The Women's Center, a local domestic violence shelter. The remainder was given to the shelter to assist in their programs. Attached is a photo of SAVE members and the penny collection. ~ Sarah Dianich, English Teacher, SAVE Advisor , Book Club Advisor, Mukwonago High School

Our SAVE Chapter will help the less fortunate this Holiday Season by donating $150 to help Battered Women. The service project our SAVE Chapter is conducting over the Holidays is Volunteering at the Children's Hospital, we will be reading books to children over the Holidays. ~ Dinh Doan and Candy Gonzalez, Montbello High School, Denver,CO

My SAVE Chapter is collecting toys and books for the local organization called First in Families; this organization helps with people and their families to create what the want in now and in the future. ~ Jonai Lloyd, Laney High School, Wilmington, NC

Last December, my SAVE chapter sent toys and toiletries to the battered women and children shelter. The children picked out a gift to give to their mothers, and the mothers picked out something to give to their children. Hopefully we will get to do that again this year. ~ Casey Story, Garner High School, Garner, NC

Well, my SAVE chapter will be doing a stuffed animal and toy drive to take to local hospitals. It's something we do every year. It makes the ones that don't have families to give them gifts, a smile, and that is all you should need to make your day and to make your chapter understand that this is the season to give. ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, Greenville, NC

The holiday season is our chapter's favorite time to get involved! We have been involved with Treats for Troops in which we collected items to send to troops in Iraq. We also enjoy doing Adopt a Family and Toys for Tots. In Adopt a Family, we are assigned a family and given their wish lists. We then try our hardest to fullfill their Christmas lists. Toys for Tots is something simple that we can do if we all bring in a few toys to donate. ~ Cassady Tetsworth, Northwest High School, Greensboro, NC

The September Question of the Month: What are some ways that your SAVE chapter makes meetings fun, exciting, and informational? How do you promote them to your peers/potential members?

RESPONSES:

Some of the ways that my SAVE chapter makes our meetings fun are: doing little activies that everyone likes to do and we also do little "give away" gifts! To promote our SAVE chapter, we hang posters around the school announcing when our first meeting will be. We also supply food for our members and we wear our tee shirts from the previous year! ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, NC

We make our S.A.V.E meetings interesting by telling our reports and then asking what has happened this week. At the end of the meetings we give out little prizes and give out a quote for the day. We tell our peers about the quote and share what we have learned from our meeting this is how we share the word about SAVE and making our voices be heard for the day! This is also a way to promote positive reactions in our school and community. ~ Brady Ledbetter, Ira High School, Ira, TX

Some of the things that the SAVE chapter at Highland School of Technology does to make meetings fun and exciting is we try to have at least one activity to do while at meetings that relates to the monthly focus. Some of these activities might include spray painting signs for our next activity, making cards for a local shelter, or playing "get-to-know-you" games. To make our meetings informational, we scroll important dates and reminders on the daily TV shows and announcements. One of the duties of our SAVE secretary is to announce upcoming events and dates to our chapter at our bi-annual meetings. One of the biggest things that our Highland School of Technology SAVE chapter focuses on is spreading the word of SAVE and one of the ways we do that is through recruitment. We are always encouraging our members to bring a friend to a meeting in hopes of doubling and tripling our chapter in the near future. ~ Jaclyn Morton, Highland School of Technology, Gastonia, NC

A great way to make meetings fun and exciting for new and returning members are icebreakers. Games that break up the tension between the new and old members. They are fun, outrageous, and a great way to learn life lessons and new people! ~ Shadezja Garrett, North Chicago High School, North Chicago, IL

Something that the Cuthbertson High School SAVE chapter does to make meetings and being apart of save more fun is we host dinner guests. Our advisor and myself make a list of influential people in our community (lawyers, judges, officers, justice department members, victims) to come to our school to be a guest speaker for the evening. We supply pizza, or other simple meals and everyone comes together to eat and listen to our guest. It’s a great way to sit back, relax, have a good time, and learn about roles we can play in out community and what we can do to get involved. I love it! I think it's just a great time and would encourage everyone to try it. ~ Jessica Weber, Cuthbertson High School, Waxhaw, NC

RESPONSES FROM 2010-2011:

Everyone has a chance to express their feelings, we inform our school about everything we do. ~ Morgan Kowitz, Wilmot Union High School, Genoa City, WI

We have meetings weekly and we usually try to make meetings fun by just being silly and occasionally we will all buy each other little gifts and exchange just to make things a little more exciting. Our meetings are always very informative, we are actually required to keep a notebook of all the handouts we are given which helps keep things organized. We always learn something new each week about S.A.V.E. which also keeps it exciting. As far as promoting the program, we have posters strung throughout the hallways and we always have announcements over the intercom weekly. ~ J. P. Wilson, Ira High School, Ira, TX

Ice breakers and team builders are always a great way to start of any meeting! It helps people get to know each other and warm up to get the meeting started. But the most important thing is to make all students feel involved. Activities should be interactive and planning should include ideas of all members. Food is also a way to get people to come to meetings, but making them feel welcome is the way to get them to come back. ~ Casey Story, Garner High School, Garner, NC

Things that my SAVE chapter does are fun ice breakers games to help the new incoming members become a little more known to SAVE. We also try to do a buddy system were an upperclassman partners with an underclassman, to give them a better understanding about SAVE. Things that also help out with attendance would be serving food like chips, cookies, drinks. These are just a few tips that would help. ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, Greenville, NC

Some ways that my chapter that my chapter makes mettings fun, exciting, and informational is by doing activities that we like to do and tie them to things that are important. For example, alot of the SAVE members in my chapter likes to win competitions, whether it's sports or contests. So one thing we do is in the summer program, when we learn about college and post-college life, we do little games like trivia or online scavenger hunts. Winning teams get t-shirts, candy, or other cool items. In a way, this is fun and informational, and it keeps the members wanting to learn because of the reward of not only winning something, but knowing about it before it happens. ~ Shadezja Garrett, North Chicago High School, North Chicago, IL

Why should my SAVE Chapter attend the National SAVE Summit? What benefit will it be to the students?

RESPONSES:

My chapter should attend the summit because it is full of helpful tips and different ideas to help prevent violence. it would benefit the student by showing them all the different people committed to the same cause and it would renew the fire burning to eliminate violence everywhere. ~ Hannah Froh, Chandler High School, Chandler, OK.

Our SAVE Chapters will have three members attending the National SAVE Summit. SAVE Chapters should attend the summit to benefit from the breakout sessions and being able to network with other SAVE Chapters.- Dinh Doan and Candy Gonzalez, Montbello High School, Denver, CO

Our chapter has never actually gone to the summit but we think that going would benifit the chapter for more ideas and to meet other chapters from other places in the country. Sharing our ideas in exchange for other chapter's would help every chapter get a better outreach! ~ Kalynn Kowitz, Wilmot Union High School, Genoa City, WI

SAVE Chapter should attend the National SAVE Summit because they can learn new stuff for their chapter so they can make a better tomorrow. This can benefit the students in that they can learn ways to get more involved in their community. ~ Jonai Lloyd, Laney High School, Wilmington, NC

Every SAVE Chapter should attend the National SAVE Summit because it's an excellent way to get connected with other chapters around the country as well as learn how to make your chapter grow and improve. That are many beneficial workshops and speakers that will be there. It is a great experience every SAVE member should have, especially seeing how it is the 20th Anniversary. ~ Casey Story, Garner High School, Garner, NC

Students atttending the National SAVE Summit will benefit from the breakout sessions conducted; learning from the different chapters and YABers on how to prevent different types of violence. This should greatly impact my chapter on different ways to stop violence in our schools. ~ Gerardo Ceballos, Montbello High School, Denver, CO

The reason why my SAVE Chapter should go to the SAVE Summit because we will learn different things that will help our SAVE Chapter. We will learn many ways to present, and do other activities. ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, Greenville, NC

My chapter should come to the summit because they could see how people from all around the world come out to stop the violence and just have a good time. Students would really benefit from the summit because it can change a person's outlook on violence and they also could learn more about S.A.V.E.!!!! ~ Brehanna Jordan, North Chicago High School, Chicago, IL

The May Question of the Month: May is National Youth Traffic Safety Month. What can you do to improve the safe driving habits of your peers?

RESPONSES from 2010:

I think the easiest way to make sure our peers are driving safely is to hold them accountable. Most teens are affected mostly by peer pressure and if they are surrounded by safe drivers I believe they will sooner-or-later start following. Also Oklahoma is working on many safe driving bills considering texting and just plain old cell phone usage while driving. I believe that with these laws the road will become much safer. ~ Hannah Froh, Chandler High School, Chandler, OK.

Our chapter thinks that the best way to get your friends to drive better is to tell them to drive better! Your peers are your greatest influence and when they think it's not cool to drive reckless, it in some way will reflect in you! ~ Kalynn Kowitz, Wilmot Union High School, Genoa City, WI., Montbello High School, Denver, CO.

Youth traffic accidents seem to be caused by the distractions within the car. This includes music, cell phones, and passengers. If your friend need improvements on their safe driving habits, a good way to help them is to be a good passenger. Simply being a good passenger is by accommodating them to get rid of their distractions while they are operating an automobile. If they want the song/radio change do it for them, if they are the texting/cell phone using kind of person take their phone away, and that will help them improve their safe driving habit vastly. ~ Candy Gonzalez & Dinh Doan, Montbello High School, Denver, CO.

As we are approaching an end to another school year, will you be attending a new school in the fall? If so, does the school/college have a SAVE Chapter?

RESPONSES:

I am planning on attending the University of Colorado at Denver where there isn't a SAVE Chapter. I plan to start a SAVE chapter that will be able to collaborate with other clubs with the same views. In the Denver area, the Montbello SAVE Chapter plans to talk with other schools to expand the organization. ~ Gerardo Ceballos, Montbello High School, Denver, CO

The SAVE Chapter at Wilmot this year is made up of Juniors and Freshmen and we all will still be attending Wilmot next year and we do have a very active chapter. ~ Kalynn Kowitz, Wilmot Union High School, Genoa City, WI

Yes, I will be attending a new school in the fall. I will be attending the Honors College at Texas Tech University. Unfortunately, there is not a SAVE Chapter there, but I will be looking into creating one and if I'm not able to I will be working with different organizations with the same views. ~ Danielle Diaz, Highland High School, Albuquerque,NM

I don't plan on attending a new school in the fall, but the school I go to now has a very active SAVE Chapter. ~ Jonai Lloyd, Laney High School, Wilmington, NC

I will be attending the same school in the fall as I did this year. It does have a SAVE Chapter and I look forward to participating in it again next year! ~ Casey Story, Garner Magnet High School, Garner, NC

No, I will not be attending another school. I will be at my school for one more year and yes my school has a SAVE Chapter.~ Brehanna Jordan, North Chicago High School, Chicago, IL

This fall, I will be attending the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. I do not believe there is a SAVE Chapter established there yet, but I plan on working to start a new one once I'm there. There may also be a non-violence group in the campus community already, so I'm excited to hopefully be working together with them as well. ~ Amanda Krebsbach, Mukwonago High School, Mukwonago,WI

April is the start of Prom activities. How is your SAVE chapter promoting healthy and safe activities for Prom goers? Are you addressing healthy relationships, alcohol and drug free activities?How are you encouraging Teen Safe Driving before and after Prom?

RESPONSES:

In the month of April and May our SAVE Chapter will be doing our Annual Prom Promise Pledge. Along with that we will be giving away gifts to the Juniors and Seniors that signs the Prom Promise Pledge. We received feed back from our SAVE Chapter and they think statistics would be very helpful to the prom goers. ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, Farmville, NC.

RESPONSES from 2010:

In our school, all the Juniors and Seniors and all Sophomores and Freshman lucky enough to share a class with them got to go to the race track next door and view a mock crash. it was very effective. ~ Kalynn Kowitz, Wilmot Union High, Wilmot WI

Prom is just around the corner and many of our classmates will be attending. Our SAVE Chapter is promoting healthy and safe activities for prom goers by hanging posters, handing out prom statistics on flyers, and having Morning Announcements to encourage students to stay safe on prom night. There will be an After Prom at our school adressing alcohol and drug free activities. We are asking students to have a buddy to make sure you are being safe, as well as having a designated driver in case things do get out of hand. Our chapter also has a project, asking cab drivers if they may offer a free ride to and from prom in order to assure Teen Safe Driving. Prom is a time to have fun, but we also want everyone to be safe. -Dinh Doan & Candy Gonzalez, Montbello High School, Denver, CO.

My SAVE chapter will be doing the Prom Promise activity, this activity will allow prom goers to have a better understanding of why not to drink or use drugs. We will also be talking about dating violence and ways you could identify them. ~ Nigel Cox, Farmville Central High School, Greenville, NC

Our chapter has decided to focus on child abuse for this month do to the fact that our prom isn't until May 9th. We have come up with many great ideas that we intend to