Healthy Communities • Healthy Youth initiatives know that asset building is not about quick fixes or single acts, but about building awareness and changing habits across their communities. Annual events or celebrations are one way that community initiatives shine a light on the importance of asset building and asset builders. They also make asset building fun for everyone!
1. Annual Asset Champions Breakfast—Project Cornerstone (San Jose, California)
This breakfast honors the individuals and organizations whose commitment to asset building makes Silicon Valley a better place for young people to live and grow. This year, nearly 800 people representing local governments, businesses, schools, community organizations, and faith communities, as well as parents and youth, attended the event.
See photos from the event
Learn more about this year’s Asset Champion award recipients
2. Family Celebration of Community Assets—Rochester-Monroe Country Youth Board (Monroe County, New York)
The Rochester-Monroe County Youth Bureau sponsored a yearly “Family Celebration of Community Assets” event at the Seneca Park Zoo. From June through September, every community’s asset coordinator submitted names of asset builders, both individuals and groups, to be recognized for their outstanding asset-building efforts. Everyone nominated received a certificate at the September event.
3. Ice Cream Social—Children First (St. Louis Park, Minnesota)
The event is hosted at a local park and includes free ice cream from a local ice cream shop (with their very own Children First flavor), entertainment and family activities. This year a Sparks Fair will be held—the fair will feature a variety of activities that may help kids and adults find what motivates and inspires them.
4. Union County Fair Parade—Union County Youth Plus (Union County, Iowa)
Who says you need to put on your own event to honor asset builders? Iowa’s Union County Youth Plus created a float that featured youth and adults in the community who were active in asset building-efforts, and the float was included in the county fair parade.
5. GoHCHY.org—Greater Omaha Healthy Communities • Healthy Youth (Omaha, Nebraska)
Celebrating asset builders doesn’t always need to involve a big event. The Greater Omaha Healthy Communities • Healthy Youth Web site has recently started a listing to recognize all asset-building organizations and businesses in the community. Organizations who are intentionally building assets are invited to complete an online application process. With several different levels of support, all types of businesses and organizations that build assets in young people have a chance to be featured on the Web site.
