Atlanta Youth Academy

Mission:

The Atlanta Youth Academy exists to advance the Kingdom of God by offering an excellent Christ-centered education to low-income urban communities.

Purpose of Ministry:

Atlanta Youth Academy provides an academically rigorous Christian education for urban youth, pre-K through 8th grade, whose families believe in the importance of education but who do not have access, either financially or geographically, to excellent private schools. At AYA, students are prepared to succeed as learners and thinkers, as servant leaders, and as persons of moral character and spiritual strength. For 18 years, the AYA approach has been to show faith in action through Christian values woven into all curriculum and activities. Our commitment at AYA is to transformational education, one child at a time. We provide a “prep school quality” education to kids with the potential to not only transform their own futures, but their family households and sometimes their communities.

Using the OHS grant: 

The grant funds from One Hundred Shares will be used to perform a safety and security overhaul of our campus. Because of our mission to serve the under-privileged, our school is necessarily located in one of Atlanta’s most impoverished areas. Our location brings with it significant security risks. We plan to implement new security measures and alarm system upgrades which will afford our children a safe haven in which to learn and play. We will be able to complete the fence around our campus perimeter, upgrade our security system and surveillance cameras, improve the lighting around our buildings and parking area, and build secure storage for our valuable audio/visual and computer equipment.

Volunteer opportunities: 

Tutoring, Library volunteers, AYA Auction Planning, Classroom Assistance, Administrative Assistance, Playground Assistance

Covenant House Georgia

Mission:

We who recognize God's providence and fidelity to his people are dedicated to living out his covenant among ourselves and those children we serve, with absolute respect and unconditional love. That commitment calls us to serve suffering children of the street, and to protect and safeguard all children. Just as Christ in his humanity is the visible sign of God's presence among his people, so our efforts together in the covenant community are a visible sign that effects the presence of God, working through the Holy Spirit among our kids and us.

Purpose of Ministry:

Covenant House Georgia (CHGA) serves homeless, runaway and trafficked youth ages 18-21. Young people become homeless for many reason—they may have “aged out” of foster care, escaped a violent relationship, runaway from abusive or neglectful parents, or been raised in an impoverished situation where the family simply can’t afford their care after age 18. CHGA provides food, clothing and shelter as well as the support and life skills these young people need to become independent, productive adults.

Using the OHS grant: 

The OHS grant will allow Covenant House Georgia to purchase vans, which will allow us to be able to easily transport our youth between our shelter and independent living facilities to church, special events, etc.

Volunteer opportunities: 

• Facilitate A Class: Use your expertise to host a class and teach our youth a variety of life and career skills. Our youth need classes on how to search for jobs online, write a resume, create a monthly budget, cook a meal, etc. Life Skills classes take place Tuesday and Thursday from 11:00am to 12:00pm or Monday and Wednesday from 8:00pm to 9:00pm.
• Administrative Support: Our executive staff could use additional support around the office. We are in need of assistance with filing, database management, large mailings, answering calls, etc. Administrative support is needed Monday – Friday between the hours of 9:00am to 5:00pm.
• Prepare & Share a Meal: We are seeking volunteers to purchase ingredients and prepare a meal for our youth. We have designed this opportunity to provide a sense of family and community for our youth while sharing a hot meal with community volunteers, staff, and their peers. Prepare & Share a Meal dinners start at 6:00pm and food must be provided for approximately 40 youth.
• Clothing & Toiletry Closets: Our clothing and toiletry closets are in constant need of loving care. We are seeking volunteers to help us sort our in-kind donations as they come in and help our youth choose appropriate clothing. The Clothing Closet is operated Monday – Thursday from 9:00am to 12:00pm.
• Host a Drive: Host a drive to collect clothing, school supplies, birthday gifts, sports equipment etc. Please contact us before hosting a drive to determine our current needs.

Richmont Graduate University

Mission:

"Richmont Graduate University provides Christ-centered education and research that advances God’s work of healing, restoration, and transformation in the lives of individuals, churches, and communities."

Purpose of Ministry:

Richmont is preparing graduate students to serve as licensed counselors, therapists and ministers who help clients successfully confront life’s most challenging issues from a biblical perspective. Simultaneously, the university partners with more than 60 metro Atlanta nonprofit organizations while supporting a network of nine Community Counseling Centers. These Centers provide individuals, families and groups with counseling and mental health services regardless of their insurance status or ability to financially contribute. By training graduate students and providing reduced-fee counseling services, Richmont is helping Atlanta residents grow in self-sufficiency and find hope and healing.

Using the OHS grant: 

Richmont is aware that much of our current technology, specifically our phone system, is no longer sufficient to support student learning, staff operations or provision of counseling services to community members. While providing more than 24,000 local counseling sessions last year, Richmont is educating the next generation of Christian counselors and therapists who will bring the life and hope of Christ to clients across the world. In order to train more students as Christian counselors and therapists in more places we specifically need to update our phone system in order to reach them and to be available via phone to clients who receive counseling through Richmont’s network. Receiving this grant from One Hundred Shares will allow the university to fulfill the final portion of our technology upgrades by installing a multi-site phone system that will be hosted in Atlanta and that will meet our growing demands for service.

Volunteer opportunities: 

At the moment, Richmont does not have any volunteer opportunities available.