Myrna R. Hernandez-Serrano is fundraising
Keller Williams Adopts PRYAR
Who is Puerto Rico Youth at Risk?
Puerto Rico Youth at Risk, Inc., PRYAR (Jóvenes de Puerto Rico en Riesgo, Inc.) is a private non-profit organization that has worked in PR since 1996, designing and implementing programs geared to youth at risk. The organization pioneered the use of one to one mentoring as a prevention tool with youths aged 11 to 17 years who are potential school dropouts, at risk of substance abuse, violent and delinquent behavior.
The program targets under-achieving public schools where evidence shows that only one of every two students that enter the public school system makes it to college and only 41% of those actually finish.
Ultimately the program not only serves the students but their teachers, mentors and family members, therefore strengthening these relationships, providing academic, psychological and social tools to the community working with at-risk youth, as well as to the youth themselves, to assist all in transforming young people’s lives.
When Hurricane Maria hit the island on September 20th PRYAR served 7 municipalities throughout the island and several schools within each municipality, most of them are in close proximity to where the eye made landfall.
The Impact of Hurricane Maria
It is without saying that Hurricane Maria has affected every single resident of the island. Due to lack of economic resources, the poorest communities of the island have suffered unprecedented destruction. These are the communities PRYAR has served within the last 21 years.
The effects of this storm go beyond the structural and natural damages sustained by the island. The largest impact besides the loss of basic necessities of power and water is the loss of income for non-profit organizations like PRYAR as well as the loss of jobs for their employees. All funding granted to these smaller agencies has been frozen or eliminated in order to fund reconstruction. The effects of this economic loss don't just affect its 18 employees but the families it serves. Families who had created bonds with an agency that offered them guidance to steer their children towards a future of opportunities.
Rising From The Storm
Two weeks into this catastrophe the staff of PRYAR is ready to get back into action and they need our support. They have designed an action plan that will let them reach the residents of the communities they serve; not just the families enrolled in their programs. Each served school has a tutoring center managed by PRYAR, these will become their operation center for each community.
•They will offer services in the communities instead of expecting residents to move to San Juan to access services.
•Most of these schools are currently used as refugee centers for people who have lost their homes. They will open their doors to all of them and become an extra resource for the mayor of those municipalities in supporting them to access FEMA services and governmental support.
•They will visit and access all 359 families they currently serve to determine the needs for each family and youth. They will offer psychological services to these families.
•They will create support groups at each school through their licensed staff to help residents cope with loss, learn resiliency and healthy recovery, deal with this crisis and help them manage the emotional effects of this event in an empowering way.
•They will recruit their Youth Leadership Program (Orden del Manicato) to help with cleanup efforts and be available for community support in rebuilding. As power and internet are restored to each center, they will be available for residents to have access to computer services.
•As schools start providing educational services again the organization and its tutors will be available to serve the Department of Education as needed in the process of reintegrating the students and catching up with loss of instructional time.
Why them?
100% of all raised funds will go to the agency; helping increase cash flow in a battered economy. It will help pay for salaries of people who are dealing with their own losses and are willing to go out serve their community.
This is an organization that has had a long-standing relationship with the communities it serves and the island. It not only has the support of the local Department of Education but also of the professional community that serves as mentors.
Puerto Rico Youth at Risk, Inc., PRYAR (Jóvenes de Puerto Rico en Riesgo, Inc.) is a private non-profit organization that has worked in PR since 1996, designing and implementing programs geared to youth at risk. The organization pioneered the use of one to one mentoring as a prevention tool with youths aged 11 to 17 years who are potential school dropouts, at risk of substance abuse, violent and delinquent behavior.
The program targets under-achieving public schools where evidence shows that only one of every two students that enter the public school system makes it to college and only 41% of those actually finish.
Ultimately the program not only serves the students but their teachers, mentors and family members, therefore strengthening these relationships, providing academic, psychological and social tools to the community working with at-risk youth, as well as to the youth themselves, to assist all in transforming young people’s lives.
When Hurricane Maria hit the island on September 20th PRYAR served 7 municipalities throughout the island and several schools within each municipality, most of them are in close proximity to where the eye made landfall.
The Impact of Hurricane Maria
It is without saying that Hurricane Maria has affected every single resident of the island. Due to lack of economic resources, the poorest communities of the island have suffered unprecedented destruction. These are the communities PRYAR has served within the last 21 years.
The effects of this storm go beyond the structural and natural damages sustained by the island. The largest impact besides the loss of basic necessities of power and water is the loss of income for non-profit organizations like PRYAR as well as the loss of jobs for their employees. All funding granted to these smaller agencies has been frozen or eliminated in order to fund reconstruction. The effects of this economic loss don't just affect its 18 employees but the families it serves. Families who had created bonds with an agency that offered them guidance to steer their children towards a future of opportunities.
Rising From The Storm
Two weeks into this catastrophe the staff of PRYAR is ready to get back into action and they need our support. They have designed an action plan that will let them reach the residents of the communities they serve; not just the families enrolled in their programs. Each served school has a tutoring center managed by PRYAR, these will become their operation center for each community.
•They will offer services in the communities instead of expecting residents to move to San Juan to access services.
•Most of these schools are currently used as refugee centers for people who have lost their homes. They will open their doors to all of them and become an extra resource for the mayor of those municipalities in supporting them to access FEMA services and governmental support.
•They will visit and access all 359 families they currently serve to determine the needs for each family and youth. They will offer psychological services to these families.
•They will create support groups at each school through their licensed staff to help residents cope with loss, learn resiliency and healthy recovery, deal with this crisis and help them manage the emotional effects of this event in an empowering way.
•They will recruit their Youth Leadership Program (Orden del Manicato) to help with cleanup efforts and be available for community support in rebuilding. As power and internet are restored to each center, they will be available for residents to have access to computer services.
•As schools start providing educational services again the organization and its tutors will be available to serve the Department of Education as needed in the process of reintegrating the students and catching up with loss of instructional time.
Why them?
100% of all raised funds will go to the agency; helping increase cash flow in a battered economy. It will help pay for salaries of people who are dealing with their own losses and are willing to go out serve their community.
This is an organization that has had a long-standing relationship with the communities it serves and the island. It not only has the support of the local Department of Education but also of the professional community that serves as mentors.
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