Community Foundation’s Teen Group to Help Build Homes in Bridgeport

Eight members of the Youth Advisory Committee of the Community Foundation of Northwest Connecticut are off to help build homes for needy families as part of a Habitat for Humanity project in Bridgeport. The group will leave for Bridgeport on Sunday, June 25, and return a week later.

“We expect we’ll have a few blisters but feel terrific about what we will have been a part of,” said Abby Winn, the group’s president and a senior at the Gilbert School in Winsted. The committee is made up of outstanding high school students from across the Northwest Corner who are dedicated to making this world a little better for all of us.

“This group is a joy to see in action; they get such a kick out of working hard to help others,” said Maria Skinner, YAC program director. Skinner went on to say; “After six years of working with these kids, I can tell you that the teenagers of today—at least the ones I’ve been around—are responsible, enthusiastic participants in their communities.”

In addition to contributing countless volunteer hours, the youth group also awards grants to local nonprofits. This year grants were made to Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters and Children in Placement. “These are two programs that significantly impact the lives of children in northwest Connecticut, so we felt they were the most worthy recipients of the funds this year,” Winn said.

The YAC has held fundraisers throughout the year, including candy, bake and T-Shirt sales, and a dodgeball tournament this spring, to raise the funds necessary for the Habitat undertaking.