Youth Rising spotlights young leaders in Hollister
Cross-post from San Benito
Youth Alliance will showcase its second annual Youth Rising event on Sept. 15 to honor young people and their commitment to improving themselves and their community, says a press release from Youth Alliance.
The Youth Rising initiative seeks visionaries to invest in young people’s wellness and leadership by building youth spaces and programming that provides a safe space for young people to connect, learn and empower themselves, says the press release. The overarching goal is to advance and promote positive opportunities to support future generations’ wellness and leadership development.
Just in time for the second annual Youth Rising, local employer Amazon heeded the call to action and announced they will invest a “generous donation” as a Youth Champion sponsor for the Sept. 15 event. The donation will go toward Youth Alliance’s support for local youth and families, says the press release.
“Amazon continues to enjoy a meaningful connection with our community partners in Hollister,” said Sally Kay, Amazon’s Regional Head of Public Policy and External Affairs. “We are happy to lift up the work of Youth Alliance for their commitment and investments in the future of our local youth.”
The press release continues, “As a youth and family organization, Youth Alliance is proud to have Amazon’s philanthropic support once again to directly help Youth Alliance further its mission of creating centers that serve as a hub for youth and family engagement, youth leadership opportunities, counseling and mentoring, computer and technology access, education recovery, career skills building, and advocacy throughout San Benito and South Santa Clara counties.”
Sally Kay, Amazon’s Senior Manager of External Affairs in Northern California, said the global e-commerce behemoth has “officially” begun operations at its distribution facility at the corner of San Felipe and Flynn roads.
“We are committed to partnering with organizations supporting the needs of the community and we applaud the work Youth Alliance has done to invest in the well-being and development of Hollister’s young people,” Kay said.
Youth Alliance CEO Diane Ortiz added, “Youth Alliance is excited to partner with diverse organizations in the community that share the belief of youth empowerment and leadership as the foundation for better and healthier communities. We are ecstatic to continue this work with Amazon’s support.”
Youth Alliance is a community based nonprofit organization that was founded by grassroots activists to address the increasing criminalization of young people in need, and especially young people of color, says the press release. The Youth Rising fundraising event is dedicated to spotlighting the young leaders in Youth Alliance’s programs as they work to make a difference in the community.
Two young leaders at the Sept. 15 event will also receive the Tony Ruiz Scholarship and Jo Barrios Wahdan Youth on the Rise Scholarship.
For information, email Lorena Villagomez at lorena@youthall.org or call 831.265.1243. The community is invited to participate in Youth Rising online Sept. 15 at 6:30pm or at the In-Person Viewing Party at 6pm at the Hollister Youth Impact Center, 310 4th St. #101 in Hollister.
RSVP to attend Youth Rising at bit.ly/youthrising2022.