P1246990925evygf

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Gifford Pinchot National Forest
Urban Youth Program
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Program Objectives

• To introduce Urban Youth to recreational
  camping, hiking and environmental education
  opportunities on the Gifford Pinchot National
  Forest.
• To build environmental partnerships with
  traditionally under-served communities in the
  Vancouver - Portland metropolitan area. Focal
  point of the partnerships is to teach
  environmental skills that can be used by urban
  youth and our partners in the improvement of
  urban environments.
• To introduce urban youth to the concepts of
  urban forestry, environmental justice, and
  careers in natural resources management.
• Urban Youth consists of a diverse group of young
  people ages 8-19 from urban and inner-city
  backgrounds that would not normally get the
  experience, knowledge, and enjoyment gained by
  participating in National Forest activities.
  Neither economic status, nor ethnic background
  are eliminating criteria for the program.

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The Beginning
The program began in 1993 when two employees from
the Wind River ranger district, namely Carmen
Saunders and Tom Linde requested our help in
involving urban youth in National Forest programs
and activities. The first trip to National
Forest, organized by Earl Ford, was a Christmas
Tree Harvest. Thus, the Gifford Pinchot National
Forest began conducting Urban Youth Camp-Outs,
Day Camps, and a Christmas Tree Harvest each
year. We are now in our ninth year of existence.
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AND TODAY......
Despite that humble beginning in 1993 with 14
children participating in a Christmas Tree
Harvest at Wind River, this program has expanded
to serve over two hundred youth that participate
in many Forest activities.
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......OVERNIGHT ACTIVITIES SUCH AS........
International Migratory Bird Day
Each year for International Migratory Bird Day
the Urban Youth Program takes youth out to Trout
Lake, Washington for an International Migratory
Bird Day Campout. During this campout, Forest
Service employees come out and lead the youth in
activities such as Bird Watching and Nest
Building.
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National Fishing Week
To celebrate National Fishing Week, the Urban
Youth Program does an annual overnight Campout.
The night before the big Free Fishing Clinic
(hosted annually by the Forest Service), the
youth are taken to Atkinson Snow Park where they
do various activities to prepare them for the
following day.
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BUDS CAMP
Through a partnership with the Community A.M.E.
Zion Church (Vancouver), the Urban Youth Program
also does an annual camp for the churchs Buds of
Promise Childrens Group. This group consists of
children from the A.M.E. Zion church and St. John
Catholic Church that are 12 and under. These
youngsters spend two nights in our National
Forest (usually on the Mt. St. Helens District),
during which time they go on hikes and do various
other camping activities. In the history of the
BUDS CAMP, the kids have toured the Ape Caves,
Lava Canyons, the Trail of Two Forests, as well
as participated in a Terrestrial Ecology field
exercise with another one of our partners,
Wolftree.
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Terrestrial Ecology
Otherwise Known As.
The Noxious Weed Pull!
In the past, this was just an overnight campout
that gave the youth an opportunity to get out to
the Forest and earn a stipend by learning to
identify and pull Noxious Weeds, as well as
learning how the Weeds affect Forest Ecology
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With other Forest Related recreational and
educational activities such as trips to the Wind
River Research Natural Area (The Canopy Crane),
Green Space Modeling.
And Forest Volleyball.
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From the Terrestrial Ecology Campout came the
idea for.
The Teen Urban Forestry Club
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The Teen Urban Forestry Club (initiated summer
2000) is a group of youth between the ages of 14
and 18 trained by Forest Service employees and
other professionals in Forestry/Urban Forestry
practices such as Tree Identification,
Evaluation, Inventory, as well as others. This
training leads to the youth conducting projects
both in their own community and in the National
Forest. The youth earn a stipend of twenty-five
dollars per day for the training and all projects
conducted thereafter. The first project is
usually the first weekend after the five day
training, and it is usually a Noxious Weed pull
in the National Forest (for old times sake).
Another project completed by the T.U.F. Club was
the initial step in the development of the
Kevanna Neighborhood Park (located across the
street from the GPNFHQ office).
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AND NOW..
DAY TRIPS
Throughout the year, the Urban Youth Program
takes kids from the Inner City out on a series of
various Day Trips, including the December
Christmas Tree Harvest (where it all started).
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IT ALL STARTS IN JANUARY WITH..
WINTERFEST
Each year the Urban Youth Program takes a group
of youth out to the National Forest for
Winterfest, an annual event hosted by Skamania
County, where they enjoy a full day of snow play.
The youth enjoy learning to walk in sno-shoes and
sledding down the huge snow hill, along with good
hot chocolate to keep warm.
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And in accordance with the International
Migratory Bird Day Campout, the U.Y.P. does a
series of Day Trips for Bird Day as well
Each year we take the kids from the WA State
School for the Blind to the Ridgefield Wildlife
Refuge where Wildlife professionals like Eric
Anderson teach the kids to identify birds by
sound..and touch.
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The U.Y.P. also partners up with the Ridgefield
Wildlife Refuge to do Bird Watching Day Trips for
the youngsters from the Marshall Preschool.
MARSHALL
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AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST
The Christmas Tree Harvest
Although the 2001 Christmas Tree Harvest was
cancelled due to severe weather conditions, the
annual December event has come a long way from
the initial 14 youth that went out back in 1993.
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Funding.

• Gifford Pinchot National Forest
• Vancouver/Clark Parks and Recreation Teen
  Services
• Various Grant Sources
• Smaller Contributions from other Partnerships.

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PARTNERS
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THE NUMBERS
Numbers based on averages not including 2002
statistics
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THE NUMBERS
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THE NUMBERS
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POSITIVE SPIN-OFF.
The Youth Employment Program
Throughout the years of the Urban Youth Programs
existence, there have always been Teen Leaders.
Teen Leaders were chosen to assist the program
coordinator with the particular activity. Teen
Leader duties included the loading and unloading
of all gear needed for the particular activity,
as well as being responsible for the upkeep of
said gear. They are also responsible for other
duties such as chaperoning younger kids and being
group leaders for different activities. These and
other responsibilities held by the Teens gave
them a solid foundation for a resume and valuable
experience interacting with and working under
adults. As the first group got older, more teens
wanted to work. Through a partnership with the
Vancouver Branch NAACP, we were able to find the
older kids employment within Vancouvers
Corporate Infrastructure. Since the program got
started (summer 2002), the City of Vancouver,
Safeway, and the Forest Service have hired over
10 of our former Teen Leaders.