Community Center sponsored by Steemit

Hello Steemit my name is Juju Camacho im a Community organizer for Hartford ct. Im a single father i have been self employed for 12 yrs what i do for a living is put together Community Events involving Skate, Hip Hop and Festivals. My Organization is called UnderGround Coalition LLC. recently we have been talking to realtors for a Downtown Location to turn into a community center called the LXY Community Center it is located in the heart of Downtown Hartford.





Im looking to see if the Steemit Community would help us fundraise to get the location. Its $8,000 deposit or proof that we can get funding from grants and have gotten funding in the past. We can produce those documents but at the end of the day its $$$ even though its about community and youth. I have signed a agreement to be in the space August 1st but i must convince the owners and realtor with the documents or give a deposit to get the space.In the space we will have a internet cafe. I would love to post that Steemit was a sponsor in big bold letters and let the youth come on this platform post, learn about the community. I ask for your help with upvotes and donations it would be greatly appreciated below is our mission and what we plan on doing with the space. I thank you again Steemit for taking the time to read this and your upvotes/donations.

L.X.Y (LEAGUE OF XTRAORDINARY YOUTH) COMMUNITY CENTER

Summary

The necessity for a safe space geared toward children, teenagers, and young adults is obvious in any

large city such as Hartford. Youth, especially boys and girls of color (although not exclusively), may be

be continually exposed to (if not traumatized by) negative factors such as violence in their

neighborhood. While school can sometimes provide a temporary reprieve from these types of negative

environments, this is not always the case and the school environment can be a continuation from their

home environment. Additionally, the cutting of services and positions in Hartford Public Schools and

the Department of Social Services, has created a situation of increased vulnerability for Hartford youth,

since the city will be trying to do “more with less” i.e. with less staff, programs, and money.

With all these factors (and more) in mind, there is void for a unique community space, where youth can

go to aside from the home and school. This is most important in the afternoons and evenings between

school and returning to their neighborhood, and it is also very important during the summer months

when school is out. The LXY Community Center will fill this void by being a unique community space

for the youth of Hartford and downtown Hartford in general.

LXY Community Center will serve the community by providing a safe physical space for youth from

diverse lingual, ethnic, racial, class, generational, and geographic groups. LXY will also serve the

community at large by providing unique and engaging educational opportunities involving dance,

poetry, visual art, culture, health, decision making, collective action, technology, life skills, and

entrepreneurship. LXY is not solely about creating a community space, it is about creating a family

environment. A environment where everyone is a part of the family no matter what their personal

history or background may entail. An environment founded on positivity, knowledge, fun, and growth,

especially if those who enter LXY are not receiving those types of influences elsewhere in their lives.

Approach and Methodology

LXY's approach to serve youth in downtown Hartford involves three core tenets:

 Unique and engaging programming

 Education and skill development

 A fun family atmosphere.

Unique and engaging programming

While some programming geared toward youth in community spaces may be engaging in traditional

ways such as games and sports, this approach is nowhere near unique. LXY will engage youth

interested in poetry (spoken word, rap), dance (traditional, breakdancing), visual art (painting, graphic

design, graffiti writing), music (production and DJ'ing), technology, film, video and other motivating

pursuits, to not only hone their craft in these areas but to build relationships from people throughout

Hartford who are expressing themselves similarly. LXY, through it's extensive network of artists will

also provide mentors for burgeoning young artists to take the next steps towards pursuing art as a career.

Education and skill development

While LXY will be about having fun and expressive activities, it will also be about learning and

education. It will not be like school though. The education youth will receive from LXY will be

practical, including life skill development, physical skills, business skill development and

entrepreneurship. LXY is about giving youth the tools to succeed in the world, whether these tools are

social, physical health, emotional, financial, intellectual, or entrepreneurial.

Fun family environment

The LXY community center, will be just that- a center of the community. Not only for youth, but by

extension, for their parents as well. Balancing the focus on education and skill development with fun

games and activities such as video game tournaments will provide this space with a strong mixture of

work and play, and everything in between.

Products, Resources, and Services

The LXY community center, once fully operational, intends to provide the following breadth of

products, resources, and services to the community:

 Health classes (meditation, yoga, martial arts)

 Internet cafe

 Breakdancing (b-boy) classes

 Workshops and trainings

 DJ services

 Merchandise (food, drink, apparel)

 Poetry events

 Hip-hop events

 Cultural events

 Art shows

 Game tournaments

 Film festivals

 Screen printing

 Graphic design

 Business development

 Technology classes

Benefits

Ultimately, The LXY Community will benefit the youth of Hartford and downtown Hartford in many

noticeable ways:

 Provide a safe and welcoming space for all youth

 Enhance life skill development for youth

 Enhance self-advocacy and self-empowerment skills for youth

 Enhance critical thinking skills for youth

 Enhance social and emotional skills for youth

 Enhance technological skills for youth

 Enhance artistic skills for youth

 Enhance health and nutrition skills for youth

 Connect youth with the downtown Hartford community and vice-versa

 Showcase local artists in the downtown Hartford area

 Provide increased arts-based and cultural events in the Asylum Street section of downtown

Hartford

 Forge partnerships with organizations and businesses in downtown Hartford for mutual benefit

 Bring more people and attention to this area of downtown Hartford, which will positively

impact surrounding businesses

Conclusion

Although creating a community center is not unique, what sets apart LXY Community Center from

other types of models is its approach, methodology, and physical location. The owners of this space

already have an extensive combined history in event planning, promoting, and organizing, and have

extensive networks as such. Therefore, with the support from other non-profit organizations,

businesses, and the city of Hartford, the LXY Community Center will have an immeasurable impact on

the youth in Hartford but also on the culture of how people engage and interact with youth in general.

When coupled with the tremendous potential afforded by their downtown location, LXY is destined for

tremendous success, which to them, is all about the number of lives they can touch and help grow with

this institution.