A Spectacular time at Spectacle Island

Hi everyone,

This weeks adventure brought the All Access staff back to Spectacle Island. While at Spectacle Island, the kids were involved in numerous activities along the island. The activities included searching for sea glass, fishing, playing kick ball, wiffle ball, frisbeach, or taking a quick swim. Our fun started once the various youth groups arrived at the Bank of America Pavilion. Once we board the Provincetown II, we began interacting with the kids. This one kid that stood out was boy by the name of Donald. Donald was part of the Ideal group. Donald was quite the expert in Legos and Marvel Comics. After talking with Donald, it made me want to build Spiderman out of Legos.

Talking with my man Donald

Once we arrived at Spectacle Island, It was time for the fun to continue. Some of the staffers and I headed up to the grassy meadow with the kids from Hyde Park. Before we even reached the meadow the kids were asking if we could play kick ball. Guess what,we played some kick ball!

Here's my awesome kick ball team that comprised with the kids from Hyde Park!

This was such a nail bitter of a game as each team scored lots of runs. Once the game came to an end, the kids showed that no matter what the score was it was just about having fun. All of the kids decided to shake the hands of their opponents to wish them a good game. That to me showed great sportsmanship.

After playing some kick ball it was time to go for a swim and of course play some frisbee. Once the staffers and I were in the water the frisbee playing began. The youth groups that were swimming at the time join us for some frisbee fun.

Having some Frisbee fun in the water.

See ya next week at George's Island!

Adios,

Davis

Newest Little Sister / Friend

Hey guys , its Brianna again. This is my new friend Damari. On Friday August 3, 2012 , Damari and I had a bonding moment from sharing our daily lives with each other to learning about personalities. Damari is a young 10-year old , Cape Verdian. She is from the Hyde Park Community Center and told me things like she loves to dance , play volleyball , and soccer. She said she has tried multiple times to get a dance group going within her community center but not enough people wanted to join. When I told her about how I have been dancing since I was 6-years old she was ecstatic because she has the same passion as a 10-year old girl. She inspires me to keep my dance life alive just for little kids who have different talents and inspire to use them the right way. She also told me that she loves being on boats and near the water but isnt able to be on boats because her mother gets sea sick easily. So I took it upon myself to invite her with me and my moms friends to go fishing with us. She makes me so happy and excited for the things we could do outside of work of course with her parents permission. Well time to sign out i'll write back later in the week i'll keep you posted. Toodles !

By: Brianna Charles

It's too hot to swim?

In case you haven't noticed, it is very hot in Boston these days. Very, very hot. So hot that walking from the T to your house is enough to make you consider never leaving your house (unless your house is 4 floors up in an apartment building with full sun and no AC). So hot that some of our partner organizations aren't actually allowed to leave their buildings so that the little ones stay cool, hydrated, and healthy.

Last night, two groups called to say that they would not be able to join us on our All Access Boston Harbor trip to Spectacle Island. I was afraid that we would have to cancel, and when Bruce asked, "Well, it's a small trip, do you want to cancel?," I responded quickly, saying, "I'd rather have 150 people enjoy a hot day on the island than not at all." This morning, I called the rest of the groups to remind them that there was swimming on the island, and to assure them that yes, despite the heat, if they were going, we were going.

While a smaller crew than our usual 250, over 140 youth and chaperones braved the heat to join us for a trip out. So thank you to the East End House, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Jordan and Charlestown, Roxbury Youth Initiative for making it happen. And thank you, in particular, to Hyde Park Community Center and to Winston Lloyd who reminded me that "A great day on the water is what this is all about!"

And also, to this boy, who may have the best hair ever, rocking an excellent Laminaria specimen.