Community Leaders to Make Time for Youth in Shaping Their City's Future

The youth services bureau is partnering with a city bakery in an exciting new program aimed at offering youth and community leaders a creative partnership to discuss issues important to them and become more involved in the mechanism of their city.

Called Make Time, the initiative is an offshoot of Middletown's uncommon Youth in Government program, which offers young people a chance to sit on one of 15 boards and commissions throughout the city, according to Youth Services Bureau Coordinator Justin Carbonella.

Its formation was announced at the recent Asset Builder of the Year Awards Breakfast in which community groups like the Middlesex United Way, Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, Macdonough Elementary and others were honored for their work fostering young people.

For Make Time, Carrie Carella, co-owner of NoRA Cupcake Co. in the North End, has offered to donate her kitchen space and all the ingredients to bake the confections. The cooking together idea, Carbonella said, is not only to provide an incentive for meetings, but a forum to allow kids to air their ideas and community leaders to offer their suggestions.

Mayor Dan Drew will kick off the program later this month and use the opportunity to develop a mayoral youth council, according to Carbonella, which will involve young people in decisions that affect their lives.

"He'll sit down with six kids and hash out what the footprint for that program will be," Carbonella said, during his Make Time session.

When he does, it will cement a contract Drew made when he was first elected mayor, Carbonella said. He met with youth services and other stakeholders to learn about initiatives adopted by the bureau, including developmental assets — 40 attributes of a community that contributes to positive youth development and engagement.

"Drew made a promise, essentially, 'I will involve young people in community decisions," Carbonella said. "Two years later almost, we have the chance to work with him to fulfill that promise."

Although the frequency of meetings aren't yet finalized, the idea, Carbonella said, is NoRA Cupcake Co. will be the setting for community leaders to have conversations with kids, while taking part in a "fun icebreaker" while the cupcakes are baking. 

"They may brainstorm a topic like 'how can we make downtown better?'" Carbonella said. 

Middletown's youth in government program, which appoints individuals under age 18 on is not replicated around the state, Carbonella says.

"We are one of only a couple communities in Connecticut doing that," he says, pointing to Stamford as possibly the only such city.

It's a way to get young people involved in their community at a young age and non-voting members of Middletown committees, such as the board of health, committee concerning people with disabilities, design review and preservation, the arts council and parks and recreation.

The idea, much aligned with the mission of YSB, is to foster future leaders of this and other communities. "Success lies in the investment we make in our kids and the community makes as a whole," he said. 

The branding design firm CO:LAB of Hartford has volunteer its time to create a logo for the Make Time program. "We help organizations committed to social value tackle the big questions that lead to greater awareness, purposeful motivation and deeper loyalty," according to CO:LAB's site. 

Make an announcement, trumpet your business news, speak your mind, or sell something on Middletown Patch's boards here.