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The Milford Youth Center would like to thank all the volunteers and organizations that made our fourth annual Jingle Bell Jamboree and Santa Parade float a success! Over 100 families enjoyed pictures with Santa, a jumpy, arts & crafts, face painting and snacks. We would like to specifically thank Sacred Heart Church of Hopedale, MHS National Art Society, Relay for Life of Milford, Boy Scout Troop 18, Milford PTO, Milford Girls Scouts, DJ Mike Rutkowski, Romey Connolly, the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Milford, Tony Denietolis, Christine Daddario, Alden Dunbar, Jackie Morales, Jason Renaud, and all the volunteers from the Milford Youth Center and JAG. A special thanks to Arts Towing for letting us use their truck and drove our float!

The Milford Youth Center and JAG Youth Council hosted the first “Find Yourself Friday of the New Year on Friday, January 25th from 6:30-9:00 PM at the Milford Youth Center. The event included music, dancing, snacks and games! Over 120 youth attended the event! The JAG Youth Council decided to have the event be dedicated to the the youth who lost their lives in the Newtown Ct. tragedy. The JAG Youth Council discussed that they wanted to celebrate the lives of the victims and make something positive from such a horrible event. The Youth Council asked all youth who attended to pledge to do at least one “Act of Kindness” this month! The Youth council created a Youth Center board of all our “Acts of Kindness.” All youth who made the pledge, received a free raffle ticket! The JAG Youth Council and MYC are also collaborating with GoodDeedSeed.com, which helps fosters philanthropy in kids, adults, and entire families by giving them a window into the future of one good deed.

The Milford Youth Center would like to thank the numerous volunteers, individuals and organizations that allow us to continue to grow and provide a safe and fun environment for the Youth of Milford!

Local youth attended the first "MYC Youth Got Game" Sports Night and Training Combine on Friday, November 16th from 6:30-9:00 PM at the Milford Youth Center! This event celebrated the importance of physical activity and sports! Elena Pirozhkova, USA Olympic Wrestler, attended the event and started the night off with a motivational speech. Following Elena, Liane Blyn, power lifting national and world champion, welcomed the youth and began the Training Combine, with her staff from Athletic Based Training. All youth competed in a 40 yard dash, vertical jump, and pushup & sit-up competition! All participants received a t-shirt and the winners of each age group were awarded trophies! The Milford Youth Center and JAG Youth Council were awarded a grant last June, after youth began to recognize that many of their peers at the MYC are unable to afford the cost of school sports. The JAG Youth Council wanted to offer an alternative source of exercise and a resource through which young people can develop athletic skills. By coordinating seasonal sporting events in which young people pay a small fee to participate, this team will create a scholarship program to fund one male and one female per season to play the sport of his/her choice and/or create an annual scholarship to a graduating senior who has utilized the Youth Center. The event will also offer young people at the Milford Youth Center a safe environment to hone their individual talents, learn, and play. This event was made possible by the Milford Rotary Club and United Way of Tri-County's Youth Venture Program! Thank you to the numerous volunteers, especially from Athletic Based Training and Milford High School CARE! Thank you Rivera Athletic Center and Milford Dance Center for their generous donation to our raffle prizes as well. Thank you Gisela Flamenco from Zumba, John Benedict from You Inc., Jessica Friswell from United Way of Tri-County, and Ron Auger for all your help! Finally, thank you to the youth of the Milford Youth Center and the JAG Youth Council!

Over 200 youth attended the second Find Yourself Friday youth event of the school year on Friday, October 26th from 6:30 - 9:00 PM at the Milford Youth Center! The Haunted Halloween Party included a DJ, music, games, raffles, face & pumpkin painting, food & beverages for sale, a costume contest and a Haunted House! The event was $3 per person to attend and all proceeds will go towards the United Way of Tri-County’s Feed-A-Family for Fifty Campaign. The goal of the campaign is to provide a Thanksgiving or holiday turkey dinner for 3,000 Metrowest families in need. The Face of Hunger has changed and so must our efforts in tackling this growing problem that exists in our own back yard! For more information on "Feed-A-Family" click here: http://www.uwotc.org/feed4fifty Thank you to the numerous volunteers and organizations that made this event possible. We would especially like to thank Hannafords of Milford, CARE volunteers from MHS, United Way of Tri-County, DoSomething.org, CHNA-6 and youth and adult volunteers from JAG and the Milford Youth Center!

Over 130 youth attended the first Find Yourself Friday youth event of the school year on Friday, September 28th from 6:30 - 9:00 PM at the Milford Youth Center! The event included a DJ, music, basketball jumps, sumo suits, games and food & beverages for sale. Click here for pictures of event! For the 3rd year in a row the Center collected gently used and new sneakers to be sent over and handed out by volunteers in December for youth in need in the Dominican Republic. We would like to thank the volunteers and organizations that helped make the night a sucesss: Joe Graziano, Gabbie Graziano, Jenny Medina, Jeanne McGrath, Tyler Liverpoole, Wesley Dumas, Mitchell Mazur, Lisa Bacchiocchi, Justin Barr, members of the Milford National Art Society and JAG Youth Council, Hannafords of Milford and Taylor Rental of Norfolk!

The Milford Youth Center Summer Camp kids have enjoyed a great summer with trips to Water Wizz, Canobie Lake Park, the Basketball Hall of Fame, Regal Cinema, Douglas Water Slides, Pinz Entertainment and Fino Pool! We would like to thank all the families of the youth who attended our summer camp this year. The camp was a great success and we hope to see you all again next summer! In addition, thank you to all the businesses and organizations that made donations towards the camp.

The Juvenile Advocacy Group and the Milford Youth Center would like to thank everyone who participated and attended our 4th Annual “Dressed Up, Not Messed Up” Fashion Show. We would specifically like to thank Blackstone Valley Tech’s Media and Cosmetology Department, TJ MAXX of Milford for donating the youth fashions, 495 Rental for donating the chairs, Milford High School National Art Honor Society, and the numerous volunteers that made the night possible including Ron Auger, Brea Pham, Jenny Medina, Mike Dehey, Jon Capece, Katie Glennon, Joe Graziano, Christine Daddario, Candice Robinson, Amanda Houle, Briana Tonelli and Tim Snow. All photos taken by Brea Pham

Over 140 youth attended the first "Find Yourself Friday" youth event of the new year! This event was held at the Milford Youth Center on Friday, January 27th from 6:00 - 9:00 PM and included music, dancing, games and a special New Year's Ball Drop! The JAG Youth Council decided to have the proceeds of the event to go to the Milford Play Initiative. The small entrance fee will go towards purchasing a piece of playground equipment for the new playground to be built at Fino Field. There will be a dedication on the equipment to the Milford Youth Center and JAG Youth Council! Thank you to everyone who attended and supported the event including The Juvenile Advocacy Group, JAG Youth Council, the Milford Youth Center, CHNA-6, United Way of Tri-County, Hannafords of Milford, Milford High School Art Honor Society and to the many volunteers!

Over 185 youth attended the second "Find Yourself Friday" youth event of the new school year! This free event was held at the Milford Youth Center on Friday, October 28th from after school until 6 PM and included music, dancing, raffles, special Halloween games, fun snacks, a jumpy, face and pumpkin painting and a movie! The JAG Youth Council decided to host a Halloween Party themed event this month, with a special focus on anti-bullying, in support of National Anti-Bullying Month. Every youth that entered were asked to read an Anti-Bullying Pledge created by the members of the Council and if they agreed with it could sign the MYC and JAG Anti-Bullying Banner that will be hung up at the Center. All youth who signed the banner were then given a bracelet that said "Find Yourself" and "Let others do the same" to encourage youth to have the confidence to be themselves and to respect their peers. Thank you to everyone who attended and supported the event including The Juvenile Advocacy Group, JAG Youth Council, the Milford Youth Center, CHNA-6, United Way of Tri-County, Sals Pizza, Garden Pizza, Pizza Palace, Hannafords of Milford, Taylor Rental, Steve Cassinelli and Musician Resource Center, Milford High School National Art Honor Society and to the many volunteers and families that donated decorations and made Halloween snacks for the event!

Our 5th Annual "Dressed Up, Not Messed Up" Fashion Show was held on Saturday, February 16th at 6 PM at the Milford Youth Center. Last year, we had over 50 youth participate in the show! The theme of our show for the fifth year was "Dressed Up, Not Messed Up". Through this event we plan to raise awareness about underage drinking and help teens become better informed about the dangers of alcohol so they can make healthy decisions throughout life. We also hope this event will increase youth self-esteem and attitudes toward their body image. Each year the show gets better and better, with more youth participating and community involvement! This event would not be possible without the support of local organizations and buisnesses. TJ Maxx of Milford provides the outfits, Jewelry is provided by Original Designs by Shea, Fades by Custom Creation Barber Shop and hair and make-up by BVT Cosmetology Students!

The Milford Youth Center staff and Commission would like to thank everyone who attended, donated, supported and volunteered to make the fourth annual St. Pat's Fundraiser Comedy and Dinner Dance the most successful one yet! We would like to especially thank: Oliva’s Market, Hayes Photography, Inside Corner, Bolios Sporting Goods, Exceptional Limo, United Way of Tri-County, B&J Electric, Inc., Teacher’s Driving Academy (TDA), New England Sports Center, Bill Belichick, Imperial Cars, Pinz Entertainment, Mohegan Sun, Original Designs by Shea, Loice Properties, Karl A. Bright Insurance Agency, Inc., Attorney Andy Starkis, Freedom Life Church, The Rhodes Family, Amy Leone, Milford Regional Hospital, Whitinsville Monumental Works, JP Liquors, Town Crier, Dogfish Brewery, Ron Auger, Christine Daddario, Ed Mahoney, Laura Kidman, Girl Scouts Central & Western Mass, Barbara Faria, Purchase St. Market, Jackie Morales, Theodore Patsos, Coca Cola, 495 Rental, Freedom Life Church, Prezo Grille & Bar, Big Picture Framing, Glen Ellen Country Club, Best Buy, Lenny Federico, Jen Distauro, Jess Walsh, Junior Walsh, and Igdalia Medina.

Over 70 youth participated in a 2 week long basketball tournament at the Youth Center as part of our 4th Annual MYC March Madness Competition! After 16 teams competed for the trophy, Kentucky ended up as the championship team! Dwight Anderson, Kyle Hupe, Brittany Renaud, and Angel Seda made up the Kentucky team! Youth also participated in a 3 point contest and the winner of that was Bekongcho Aminmentse. Finally, youth competed in a dunk contest and Asong Aminmentse was the champion!

MYC and JAG Youth Council members participated in the Greater Milford Relay for Life on Friday, May 10th and raised $3,000! The Relay for Life is held to raise money for cancer research and cancer patients, to spread cancer awareness, to celebrate the lives of survivors, to remember those who lost their lives to cancer, and to unite a community. We would like to thank everyone who donated on behalf of our team, as well as Hannafords of Milford and the Hoboken Club for donating food for the group!

The Milford Youth Center would like to congratulate the MYC Skate Park Youth Venture group for receiving a $1,000 seed grand from the United Way of Tri-County Youth Venture last night! United Way Youth Venture is a social entrepreneurship program for youth ages 12-20. Young people are challenged to identify an issue in their community and create a business plan for a project that will be a viable solution to the issue they have identified. Through United Way Youth Venture, young adults learn valuable skills for future academic or professional pursuits while serving as leaders who impact their community in a positive way. The team presented their idea to create a skate park at the Milford Youth Center. They are passionate about skateboarding, but have few options for places to skate that are safe or affordable. The team has worked in conjunction with the Milford Youth Center to identify a space in the basement of the building that can be used as a skate park at no charge to any child who attends the Youth Center. The team will conduct lessons at no charge to teach children how to skate safely and will host competitions as fundraisers to support skate park maintenance. The team has an established list of rules that all participants must follow, including that helmets are mandatory. We would like to thank the panelists who helped make the decision to grant the money and added very valuable input to move forward successfully. The role of a selection panelist is to listen to the team present their project and determine whether or not they have thought the idea through and are prepared to implement it. Panelists had an opportunity to ask questions and offer suggestions to the team. The panelists unanimously approved the project! The panelists included John Tessini, Bob Tremblay, Mike Walsh and Richard Villani . We would like to thank the youth who worked so hard on this project, the panelists,and especially Jessica Friswell of the United Way of Tri-County's Youth Venture program!

Fun night to celebrate a full school year of the JAG Youth Council and the Milford Youth Center! The JAG Youth Council enjoyed their end of the year party at the Milford Youth Center! The Milford Youth Center and Juvenile Advocacy Group (JAG) staff wanted to thank the youth for another great and successful year! The Youth Council helped plan and took park in numerous events and volunteer opportunities this school year! The Youth planned the monthly Find Yourself Friday events helped organize a sneaker collection for youth in the Dominican Republic, and donations to the United Way of Tri-County's "Feed a Family for Fifty," a fund to support the victim's families of Sandy Hook and to the Relay for Life of Milford. The Youth also took park in the Milford CROP Walk, "Dressed Up, Not Messed Up" Fashion Show, Milford Play Initiative Fundraisers, the Relay for Life overnight, and finally helped conduct interviews for the the Milford Youth Center's Strategic Plan! Thank you for a great year and your dedication! We will be starting up again in September!

Thank you everyone for attending our first Open House on Wednesday, August 28th from 6-7 PM at the Milford Youth Center! New and old families had an opportunity to meet the staff, the Milford Youth Commission members, and learn about our programs and NEW sign in system! We would like thank Superintendent Robert Tremblay for attending and supporting our program!

The Milford Youth Center and JAG Youth Council hosted a “Find Yourself Friday” Youth event on Friday, September 27th from 6:30-9:00 PM at the Milford Youth Center. The event included over 100 youth and they enjoyed music, dancing, snacks, a jumpy, a movie, a Photobooth, raffle prizes, and games! For the fourth year in a row the JAG Youth Council and the Milford Youth Center collected gently used or new sneakers to be sent over and handed out volunteers in December for youth in need in the Dominican Republic. Participants also made Arts & Crafts to be sent over as a Holiday gift. The Youth in the DR will return the favor and make Arts & Crafts for youth in Milford! We would like to thank the volunteers who helped make the event a success, including the Dunbar family, Alison Julian, Jenny Gonzalez, Sandy Caproni, Jack Ward, Milford High School CARE and all the JAG Youth Council members! We would also like Pizza Palace for donating raffle prizes towards “Find Yourself Fridays” and Hannafords of Milford for supporting our Find Yourself Friday events with donations of snacks and drinks!

Thank you Pizza Chef for hosting our MYC Holiday party! Thank you United Way of Tri-County, RICOH USA of Milford, Rivera Athletic Center, and all the individuals who participated in our Giving Tree! We were able to give out gifts to over 60 kids this year due to everyone's amazing generosity! Thank you Amy Leone, Mike Rivera, and the Dunbars for all your help tonight as well!

Thank you Art's Towing for allowing us to use one of your trucks and for your awesome drivers!!!

Thank you to everyone who helped making our Thanksgiving Dinner for the After School program such a success!!! Thank you to all the JAG Youth Council members (and their families) for making the sides and desserts! Thank you Hannafords of Milford for donating a turkey and thank you Amy Tamagni for making the second turkey for the kids!

Thank you Waters Corporation!!!

Thank you United Way of Tri-County for organizing a "Day of Caring" today at tthe Youth Center! We had over 15 volunteers from Ricoh USA of Milford help build a shed, landscape, paint pieces of our float and skate park! Thank you also for playing basketball with our kids and providing hot chocolate and donuts!!!

Over 80 youth attended our final “Find Yourself Friday” Youth event of the school year, on Friday, June 13th, from 2:15-6 PM! The event was free admission with snacks and drinks for sale! The event included music, raffles, and a jumpy & dunk tank! New this year: MYC Seaver Scholarship presentation, sports competitions, and a talent hour! We would like to thank everyone that helped make the last event such a success: Little Gym of Medway, Terri Michaelson, Peggy Berube, John Dulude, Sandra Caproni, Kristen Kibbee, Christine Daddario, Jason Jung, Dan Seaver, Debbie Seaver, the Meadows Family, and all the JAG and MYC staff & volunteers!

The JAG Youth Council and Milford Youth Center participated in the Relay for Life of Greater Milford for the second year in a row! The JAG Youth Council and Milford Youth Center decided that they wanted to participate in Milford’s Relay for Life on May 9th- May 10th to honor cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against a disease that has already taken too much. Relay teams camp out overnight and take turns walking or running around the high school track. Relay events are up to 24 hours in length and, because cancer never sleeps, each team is asked to have at least one participant on the track at all times. The MYC & JAG team reach their goal and raised over $3,000 for the event! We would like to thank everyone who supported our team with donations!

On behalf of the Milford Youth Commission and staff, we would like to thank everyone who attended, donated, supported, and volunteered to make the sixth annual St. Pat's Fundraiser successful! Due to the renovation, the fundraiser was held at the Marchegiano Club and included a cash bar, music, raffles, and appetizers! We also announced our 2015 Community and Individual Appreciation Awards. Paul Mina, President & CPO, accepted the Community Appreciation Award on behalf of the United Way of Tri-County. The United Way of Try-County was an easy selection as the recipient of this award, due to the years of their dedication to the Center. Both Paul Mina, Jen Maseda, and the entire staff have supported our efforts from the very beginning, allowing the Center to grow and continue to offer a free after school, an affordable summer camp and numerous youth and community events! In addition, the United Way of Tri-County goes well and beyond in supporting the Center with their annual campaigns, including their “Tools for School” Back Pack program and “Hope for the Holidays” gift collection, as well as reaching out to local businesses for “Days of Caring” and monetary contributions. In addition, we awarded former Senator Richard Moore and Rep. John Fernandes with the 2015 “Individual Appreciation Awards.” Both individuals have partnered in their dedication to the Center from the very beginning! We know we can always count on their support; whether it be sponsoring one of or “March Madness teams, organizing two busloads of After School members to a trip to Edaville Railroad, or securing a $50K grant for the Center and our Renovation project! We are thankful for these long-lasting relationships that have helped the Center live up to its mission in providing a safe environment that promotes self-esteem, builds character, and fosters the notion of community and the importance of respecting and serving others. We would like to thank every individual, organization and/or businesses that contributed to this fundraiser: The DiAntonio Family, The Seaver Family, Milford Dance Center, The Larkin Company Relators, John T. Zogby, Esquire, Carolyn Cooney & Associates, Mother Hubbard Pre-School, Milford Federal SVGS & LN ASSN, Old Time Auto Sales, Inc. , New England Decks and Floors Inc. , Crown Electric Supply Co., Inc., Milford Hardwood, Guerriere & Halnon, Inc., Danielle Sarkisian, Community Impact Inc., , Attorney James Wittorff, Area Class CO. , John V. Fernandes Esquire, Danielle Hilliard, Kristen Savio, Joseph Morais , Milford Regional Medical Center, Milford Rotary Club, Imperial Cars, Teachers Driving Academy , United Way of Tri-County, Ultimate Tanning , Larose Muscular Therapy, Kevin Tagliaferri, Attorney at Law, Golds Gym, Point of Healing, TJ MAXX, MacMed SPA, MidTown Family Fitness, Pinz Entertainment , Stove King, Laura Kidman , Comaschi Family, Hopedale Country Club, Dogfish Head Brewery, Morrison EDU, JP Liquors, Mrs. BonTempo, Pizza Palace, Olivas Market, TGI Fridays, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Miller Ale House, John and Pilar Ward, Marchegiano Club, Signs Plus, Bright Agency Insurance, Scott Michelson, Lanzeta Excavating, King Dance, Waters Corporation, and the Milford National Bank and its Charitable Foundation. We would like to thank Alison Julian, Peggy Berube and John Dulude for getting all of our fundraising letters out! We would like to make a special thank you to Vonnie Reis, Milford Town Engineer, who donated her time to make a slideshow for the event and Selectman Brian Murray for giving an update on the Renovation for everyone in attendance! We would like to thank WMRC, Milford TV, the Town Crier, and the Milford Daily News, for helping us with getting the word out about our fundraiser! We would also like to recognize our board for all their efforts: Amy Tamagni, Brenda Wheelock, Chuck Calagione, Fran Trafecante, Kristen Kibbee, Michael Walsh, Sandra Caproni, Steven Manguso and Susan Salamone. Finally, we would like to recognize the Armory Renovation Committee: Joe Nigro, Mike Walsh, Paul Malnati, John Seaver, Amy Tamagni and Selectman Brian Murray! We also would like to thank Finance liaison Will Kingkade, and Town Engineer Vonnie Reis, for all their efforts to be part of this process as well! It has been a long journey but are so appreciative of your time and hard work! We considered this year’s fundraising efforts to be particularly important, due to our transition to the temporary location for the duration of our renovation! Although we still are able to run our after school program, we are unable to hold rentals during the evening hours, a good source of raising money for the Center. It's due to the generosity of local businesses, organizations and individuals that we are able to continue to offer free after school programming, an affordable summer camp, and provide a safe and fun environment for the youth of Milford! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

We would like to thank Jeff Yalden for joining the JAG Youth Council last week at the Milford Youth Center for dinner! Jeff Yalden, one of the most in-demand youth speaker in America right now, was in town for JAG's Networking Breakfast and took time out of his busy schedule to drop into the Center! Jeff had dinner with the kids and had a long discussion on social media and bullying!

On Thursday April 9th, the United Way of Tri-County recognized one of our amazing youth members, Victoria Williams, as their "Youth Volunteer of the Year" award at their annual Recognition Breakfast! The Milford Youth Center was also recognized with a Community Impact Award! This annual Recognition Event Breakfast was held at the Sheraton Framingham and honors several volunteers, partners, programs, and supporters, as well as providing a breakfast and Keynote Speaker, Liz Murray, author of the book “Breaking Night.” We would like to thank the United Way of Tri-County for this honor and for their continued confidence and support!