Youth United UK

Youth United UK member joins Harrow's Young Parliament

This photo shows Miwa Shaw, along with many other upstanding young local citizens, giving their time to represent the voice of young people in Harrow

Half Term Challenge Day 16th February 2009

This Monday, we held a Service Challenge Day; and kicked off with a thorough cleaning of our new club hall, which was kindly offered to us free of charge, as our base for the whole day

Windows were cleaned and polished, rubbish around the premises was removed, the kitchen was spotlessly scrubbed, all surfaces in the toilets were washed, chairs that had been left outside were cleaned, and leaves that had accumulated over autumn were raked and bagged

Reg, the Scout leader who looks after the hall, very impressed with the activity, asked for photos of the work done; and was guided to our website.

For a break, the teens played a new game, 'The Bridge'. Those who initially said they didn't want to do it were informed that the challenges only got more difficult throughout the day... ;-)

After lunch, we moved on to a local church, to rid the grounds of accumulated rubbish. Not only were 36 carrier bags full of sweet wrappers, crisp packets, drinks cans and magazines collected, but the teenagers also cleared a load of broken wood, rusty metal and smashed concrete, eventually filling two large skip-type bins

Then the 'interaction challenge' started. Each team of two took it in turns to entertain people waiting at a bus stop, followed by interviewing people they met on the street. Each team member had to find out, from a young person, a middle aged parent, and an elderly person; their lifetime ambition, their happiest moment, and their deepest regret

Armed with greetings cards that they'd made themselves; their final challenge was to raise a minimum of £5 per team member through sales or service; with the condition that they were not allowed into anyone's house unless they had either helped, or were intending to help, that person

Under these circumstances, bonding with fellow team members was inevitable, and everyone learned a little more about how to do crazy things - things that would scare most adults...

A big thank you to the 17 teenagers who gave a day of their lives to make a difference, in many different ways

Michael Stout (Club Leader)

World Vision 24hour Famine

Sixteen children from Youth United UK recently participated in a country-wide event, the 24 Hour Famine, run by the international charity, World Vision. This involved fasting for 24 hours, while raising funds for the development of a community in Keembe, one of the poorest districts of Zambia. There, many adults have perished from AIDS; leaving the responsibility to raise their offspring to their older children, many of whom are still in their teens themselves

Although Keembe is about two thirds the size of Wales, there is just one hospital, and a single secondary school with too few teachers. The grown-ups in this community have a life expectancy of 37 years, and earn £3 a week to support an average of six children, some of whom need to walk over 5km to their nearest river, stream or well for their daily supply of fresh (but not clean) water; and this knowledge gave our children a new perspective on the value of the money they were collecting

Many were already aware of these factors, through fasting, and raising enough money to create five wells, for another African village a year ago; so their afternoon's Youth Club time was devoted entirely to starting their fast, and going door to door

Youth United UK specialises in challenging our children to overcome every form of fear, by doing something new (and thus, scary) each time we meet; yet this was not just another opportunity for them to grit their teeth once more; but to put their training into practice

For several, it was their first time fund-raising; and they experienced the traditional formula of immediate success, followed by a long frustrating grind of "No, thank you...", until they came to realise the value of perseverance and determination, in breaking through their own barriers

Once dark, they returned to the club to create a totally impromptu public speaking session, in which each child was given a role to play; and to keep it up, with just a few minutes of preparation before their turn came up once more, for exactly two hours (as a result of this type of training, several of our children have gone on to become outspoken class representatives and prefects at their schools)

The group stayed together, in mutual support, for the 24 hour period; and raised £630: enough to buy ovens for ten families, garden hoes for thirty families, 1100 bundles of cassava stems for vegetable crops, and training for a hundred people in improving their farms

Thirty years ago, I worked in Zambia for two months; and in that time, little seems to have changed; except that most of the people I met there, including the children, will have died. To all those in the main fasting group; to those who fasted and supported them from their homes; those who gave up their home for the event; and those who prepared food for the children afterwards; you made a big difference to the lives of many people on this day. Thank you

Michael Stout (Club Leader)


		Youth United UK member joins Harrow's Young Parliament This photo shows Miwa Shaw, along with many other upstanding young local citizens, giving their time to represent the voice of young people in Harrow
		Half Term Challenge Day 16th February 2009 This Monday, we held a Service Challenge Day; and kicked off with a thorough cleaning of our new club hall, which was kindly offered to us free of charge, as our base for the whole day Windows were cleaned and polished, rubbish around the premises was removed, the kitchen was spotlessly scrubbed, all surfaces in the toilets were washed, chairs that had been left outside were cleaned, and leaves that had accumulated over autumn were raked and bagged Reg, the Scout leader who looks after the hall, very impressed with the activity, asked for photos of the work done; and was guided to our website. For a break, the teens played a new game, 'The Bridge'. Those who initially said they didn't want to do it were informed that the challenges only got more difficult throughout the day... ;-) After lunch, we moved on to a local church, to rid the grounds of accumulated rubbish. Not only were 36 carrier bags full of sweet wrappers, crisp packets, drinks cans and magazines collected, but the teenagers also cleared a load of broken wood, rusty metal and smashed concrete, eventually filling two large skip-type bins Then the 'interaction challenge' started. Each team of two took it in turns to entertain people waiting at a bus stop, followed by interviewing people they met on the street. Each team member had to find out, from a young person, a middle aged parent, and an elderly person; their lifetime ambition, their happiest moment, and their deepest regret Armed with greetings cards that they'd made themselves; their final challenge was to raise a minimum of £5 per team member through sales or service; with the condition that they were not allowed into anyone's house unless they had either helped, or were intending to help, that person Under these circumstances, bonding with fellow team members was inevitable, and everyone learned a little more about how to do crazy things - things that would scare most adults... A big thank you to the 17 teenagers who gave a day of their lives to make a difference, in many different ways Michael Stout (Club Leader)

		World Vision 24hour Famine Sixteen children from Youth United UK recently participated in a country-wide event, the 24 Hour Famine, run by the international charity, World Vision. This involved fasting for 24 hours, while raising funds for the development of a community in Keembe, one of the poorest districts of Zambia. There, many adults have perished from AIDS; leaving the responsibility to raise their offspring to their older children, many of whom are still in their teens themselves Although Keembe is about two thirds the size of Wales, there is just one hospital, and a single secondary school with too few teachers. The grown-ups in this community have a life expectancy of 37 years, and earn £3 a week to support an average of six children, some of whom need to walk over 5km to their nearest river, stream or well for their daily supply of fresh (but not clean) water; and this knowledge gave our children a new perspective on the value of the money they were collecting Many were already aware of these factors, through fasting, and raising enough money to create five wells, for another African village a year ago; so their afternoon's Youth Club time was devoted entirely to starting their fast, and going door to door Youth United UK specialises in challenging our children to overcome every form of fear, by doing something new (and thus, scary) each time we meet; yet this was not just another opportunity for them to grit their teeth once more; but to put their training into practice For several, it was their first time fund-raising; and they experienced the traditional formula of immediate success, followed by a long frustrating grind of "No, thank you...", until they came to realise the value of perseverance and determination, in breaking through their own barriers Once dark, they returned to the club to create a totally impromptu public speaking session, in which each child was given a role to play; and to keep it up, with just a few minutes of preparation before their turn came up once more, for exactly two hours (as a result of this type of training, several of our children have gone on to become outspoken class representatives and prefects at their schools) The group stayed together, in mutual support, for the 24 hour period; and raised £630: enough to buy ovens for ten families, garden hoes for thirty families, 1100 bundles of cassava stems for vegetable crops, and training for a hundred people in improving their farms Thirty years ago, I worked in Zambia for two months; and in that time, little seems to have changed; except that most of the people I met there, including the children, will have died. To all those in the main fasting group; to those who fasted and supported them from their homes; those who gave up their home for the event; and those who prepared food for the children afterwards; you made a big difference to the lives of many people on this day. Thank you Michael Stout (Club Leader)