The Settlement:
Overview
Sailing into
Community Partnerships:
The House of
the Seven Gables and its Trustees have recently updated Caroline
Emmerton’s visionary settlement model to better address the
needs of Salem in the 21st century.
A necessary
first step in recasting The Settlement’s mission was to
eliminate the after-school and camp programs that had been
offered for many years at The Settlement.
Instead, the Board voted to establish strategic
partnerships with various community organizations whose programs
aligned with the spirit and intent of The Settlement’s mission.
This decision
to break out from the known confines of established programs
signaled a new direction.
As Anita Blackaby, Executive Director of the Gables,
stated: “Partnering with direct-service providers who are
currently working with the underserved population [of Salem]
allows The Gables to be more responsive to community needs now and in the
future.”
In effect, this
statement signaled The
Gables’ intention to loosen its brick-and-mortar moorings
and "set sail" into the larger community.
In November
2010, The Gables announced its Settlement partners for 2011 and
the programmatic goals for the collaborations.
The Gables Settlement
Partners for 2011 are:
•
Express Yourself, Inc.,
from Beverly, MA
Express Yourself
introduces underserved young people to the worlds of music,
dance, and visual arts. A joint project with
The Gables is
currently underway, with an upcoming event entitled
Dancin’ in the House.
This is a Gables-inspired visual performance piece by the young
members of Express
Yourself. The
work incorporates family stories of immigration, along with
Latino music and traditions into a rousing performance on May 19th
at the Citi Wang Theatre in Boston.
Two more events are being planned by
Express Yourself and
The Gables for
June and the fall of 2011; stay tuned for more details as the
dates draw near.
• Salem CyberSpace (a program of North
Shore Community Action), Salem, MA
Salem CybersSpace’s goal is to provide educational and
career opportunities for low-income, primarily Latino youth,
providing the foundation for achievement and self-sufficiency.
This year’s partnership with
The Gables has
already begun, and the young people in the program have used the
Visitor Center for sessions focusing on community improvement
programs and college preparation activities.
• The Plummer Home for Boys, Salem, MA
The Plummer Home is a
community-based group home for boys ages 12-18 and a
pre-independent living program for boys ages 16-22.
The Plummer Home will place several young people at
The Gables in a
structured vocational training program that will provide teens
with their first job experience. Gables staff will function as
mentors assisting the youths in learning skills and social norms
critical to their future success in today’s competitive job
market.
•
St. Peter’s Episcopal
Church / Iglesia Episcopal San Pedro & the Family
Self-Sufficiency Center, Salem, MA
Working with St. Peter’s
Episcopal Church and the Family Self-Sufficiency Center,
The Gables plans
to work with young Latinos from Salem to promote literacy,
community engagement, and social independence.
The Gables is
proud to collaborate with St. Peter’s on
The Salem Youth Summer
Theater Project, a production that will take shape during
St. Peter’s Summer Camp program under the guidance of theatre
consultant Brendan Pelsue.
Latino youth will use theatre as a tool to explore their
cultural heritage and traditions by interviewing
first-generation immigrants who are now senior citizens of
Salem. Two
performances will be done, one at St. Peter’s, another at
The Gables.
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