REAL Exclusive Magazine

We R For Kids, Inc.

By Joyce Raby

We R 4 Kids is a Sarasota non-profit organization which was founded in 1998 to address the needs of students who have problems with anger and self-control. Mrs. Lorraine Raymer, the Michigan teacher who retired to Sarasota to teach classes on anger management and self-control founded the organization.

Lorraine wrote the entire EDEN program in partnership with the University of Michigan to accommodate the needs of these students and to illustrate to them how to work on anger issues and controlling their outbursts of anger.  Lorraine was the sole teacher of the EDEN program, until she retired in 2009.

We R 4 Kids has now added new programs to its repertoire for students.  Tutoring and mentoring of students, especially at-risk youth is central to their success.  Many of the at-risk youth do not have sufficient support systems, plus many of them have insufficient help with their schoolwork and their extra schoolwork. We R 4 Kids has volunteers who work at various locations in north Sarasota at this time to help these at-risk students complete their homework, they also help them to advance on the FCAT by performing extra practice for the FCAT. The students want to do their homework, and they absolutely love the individual help.

We R 4 Kids is also working with the staff at the Robert Taylor Community Center to develop a program for youth and teens which will begin during this summer, 2013. The teens will sign a contract with the staff at Robert Taylor Community Center. Students will be introduced to various issues such as self-respect, developing respect for others, learning how to deal with bullying issues, learning how to volunteer in the community, learning how to cook, and other related matters. The teachers from We R 4 Kids will be helping to teach some of the classes for these teens and other students who attend the Robert Taylor Community Center during the summer.

In addition to its already existing programs, We R 4 kids works with Peace Jam, an international program for community service. Peace Jam works with high school in both Sarasota County and Manatee County to help get student involved with the community. The students at each school have to choose a community project that they work on throughout the whole school year. The students are working on tutoring/mentoring students in Laurel, Florida, as part of their community service work. In April of each year the students from each high school go to Florida State University to attend the annual Peace Jam conference. The students give a presentation at FSU about the work that they are accomplishing in the community, plus they get to meet one of the Nobel Peace Prize winners.  This year the students will get to meet Oscar Arias, the former president of Costa Rica. Peace Jam builds friendship and understanding among students and people from all countries.

We R 4 Kids is also working on building a more diverse community in Sarasota. Plans are being made for Unity Days in the Community, which will emphasize the beauty of each of us, the uniqueness of our individual backgrounds, and the beauty of all ethnic backgrounds. Recognition of each person as an individual who has many gifts to contribute is the basis for the Unity Days in the Community, and the programs for the Unity Days will begin in the fall of 2013.

The main purpose of We R 4 Kids is to encourage youth empowerment and plan and implement programs that foster that empowerment and leadership for all youth.  We will be setting up workshops and training for diversity for the Sarasota and Manatee communities.

Our local partners include the Sarasota Police Department, the Sarasota Sheriff’s Department, Sarasota and Manatee School Boards, UNA/USA Sarasota/Manatee Chapter, the Sarasota Commission on the Status of Women, Sarasota County and City Commissions, Peace Jam International, and various non-profits in the Sarasota/Manatee area.

We truly believe that children are our future, and that we should invest in them to prepare them for their future in the world. We need volunteers and helpers to teach the children how to become more prepared for their future responsibilities. Please contact us at the local number or the local e-mail address for more information.

We R For Kids
Joyce Raby, Executive Director
Karen Whitworth, President
Debby Jennings, Outreach Director
(941) 921.3375
ttj2@verizon.net

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