True-Liif Summer Camp 2022!

As all things, True-Liif began as a dream for founder, Ian Houston. After years of working as a summer camp counselor, mentor, and education advocate, he sought to provide an experience unlike any other. A place where children, youth, and young adults, ages 3 - 24, can play and learn. And so True-Liif was born! You are probably wondered how we can offer programming for such a wide range of participants.

We partnered with Brilliant Minds Preschool for our infant and toddler populations. They get to participate in many of our activities such as Art & Me or our field trip to John Tanner Beach.

Beyond the Bell is our core program and is serves as the main program for True-Liif. 'Bell' is our unique summer camp (and soon after school) and serves our largest population of youth, 5 - 10 year olds. Summer camp includes field trips, community service, social and personal development (finance, entrepreneurship, etc.), and of course, education!

Middle school aged youth get a bad rap. On the one hand, they are still very much children and enjoy traditional play experiences. However, they also seek opportunities for independence and leadership. Care much be given because children at this age are the most vulnerable to outside influence. That is why we created the X-Emplar Peer Mentoring Program. They get to participate in many of the fun activities as our BtB youth, but they are also given the chance to create projects and lead activities.

We recognize that most high school students are busy school-based extracurriculars or they just want to hang out with friends. However, Georgia High School students are required to accumulate a certain amount of volunteer hours and that is where we come in! That's not it, for our middle and high school aged participants, we created the P.O.W.E.R. Bridge Program. "POWER" stands for Passion, Opportunity, Wellness, Engagement, and Restoration.

We transform our youth into active community stakeholders with the power to understand how their communities work and how to change it. Working out of, Consensus Organizing: A Community Development Workbook by Mary Ohmer and Karen Demasi, our students will learn how to communicate and implement their own ideas for relevant community change. We will focus on the local neighborhood and its relevant bodies such as city councils, boards of education, chambers of commerce, etc. while developing self efficacy by exploring personhood, family/kinship networks, social and professional development. The experience is broken down into the following exploratory foci:

Innovation and Entrepreneurship: this pathway is for youth interested in business, economic ownership, and commerce as it relates to driving community empowerment. Youth will explore business development and nonprofit development as well as hone specific skills such as project management, finance management, and business accounting practices.

Rural & Environmental Development: this pathway supports youth with an interest in rural planning, sustainability, and even engineering! Students will be introduced to experiences that combine community development and STEM. We will foster our youth’s interests in the natural sciences,  engineering or relevant trade pathways such as electrician, water maintenance, and green HVAC. Their projects will focus on environmental outreach which can include the development of community green spaces, vegetable gardens, cleanups, recycling projects, innovating conservation efforts, or the management of invasive species.

Community and Economic Development: this pathway is designed for youth interested in government and social services. Youth will get to select a local organization or government program and attend meetings to learn how decisions are made regarding their communities. Youth will participate in workshops, training sessions, and other related activities to establish an active community presence in identified spaces through capacity building, program planning and development, and strategic planning.

For our college students, we offer unique internships that will allow them to complete develop, implement, and lead programs and projects based on their own career interests. We currently have two social media interns, Christine and Brooke, that are spearheading this very fundraising campaign! Their biggest project will be the launch and production of True-Liif's media experience, Critical Conversations.

Lastly, but certainly not least, we have a population near and dear to our hearts: 16 - 24 year olds that may have dropped out of high school, pregnant/parenting, and/or have had interaction with the juvenile court. We have partnered with our local workforce development agency, Three Rivers, to provide valuable work experience to eligible youth. The program pays $10/hr to play fun games all day! While earning an income, enrollees can attend G.E.D. classes or attend a post-secondary learning experience that leads to a credential.