In a continued effort to promote community engagement and provide safe after-school activities, the Kalamazoo, Mich., Corps recently partnered with the Portage Home Depot to offer youth-woodworking workshops.
Megan Johnson, Kalamazoo Corps youth director, was instrumental in facilitating a Home Depot Foundation grant for The Salvation Army to host two hands-on workshops at the corps. Twenty children, ranging in age from 5 to 15, participated in the recent birdhouse-building workshop.
“A lot of people think of afterschool activities as being an open gym or arts and crafts,” Megan said. “We wanted to do something different.”
Home Depot provided all of the materials and tools, and the company’s associates volunteered to help the children as they designed, built and painted the birdhouses.
The children were quite proud to show off their creations, Megan said. One youngster ran to his parents, presented his birdhouse, and announced, “I love it here!” she recalled.
“We are just excited to have this partnership with Home Depot,” Megan said. “We all thought this program was a great success.”
Since September, Megan has relaunched the corps’ youth program. Engaging the youth of the community is the goal.
Captain Ronald Amick, who leads the Kalamazoo Corps with his wife, Captain Bridgette Amick, said the COVID-19 pandemic took its toll on the corps’ youth programs.
“After COVID, there really was not much happening,” Captain Ronald said. “Megan has been reaching out to the community. Now, we’ve had programs on everything from hip hop dance and yoga to touring a movie theater and baking. We have had local people (businesses) helping us with these.”
Other upcoming activities for youth will include robotics and bike repair, Captain Ronald said.
“Everything is free. There is no charge for any of the kids. And we provide dinner,” he added.
The next woodworking workshop with Home Depot is planned for later this spring when children can build and paint toolboxes.
