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UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL MARYLAND AWARDS $3,000 IN HARFORD COUNTY AS PART OF THE YOUTH VENTURE PROGRAM

Patterson Mill High School students receive grants to implement social change

Baltimore, MD (April 15, 2010) – Today, United Way of Central Maryland awarded student teams at Patterson Mill High School $1,000 grants as part of the United Way Youth Venture Program, designed to empower students to design and launch lasting social ventures that have a positive impact in the community.

“Anyone who knocks teenagers today doesn’t know teenagers. There has never been a generation of young people who are so outwardly focused,” said Joe Collins, Assistant Principal at Patterson Mill and a member of United Way’s of Central Maryland’s Harford County Partnership Board.

The three teams were evaluated by a panel of local professionals who sit on United Way’s Harford County Partnership Board.

“All of us in Harford County are hugely impressed with the youth in our community. They have strong ideas and passion around what they’re doing and enormous hearts,” said Stuart Clode, Co-Chair of United Way’s Harford County Partnership Board and Senior Vice President of Marketing at APGFCU. “United Way is thrilled to be able to help underwrite these activities that will help not only the local community, but communities around the world.”

The three projects that received the grants are:
        • A Fair Trade Fair, implemented by the school’s Social Justice Club, this project will allow the group to buy and sell fairly trade products to faculty, students and parents at Patterson Mill. Funds raised would be sent back to those artisans who made them in developing nations – starting with Uganda. The group hopes to expand the marketplace into the community as well.

        • A Mural Project. Working with Habitat for Humanity in Dothan, Alabama, a student group from Patterson Mill will help create a mural to be hung in the local Habitat’s recycling center. This group hopes to help connect communities across the country through these murals.

        • Again focusing on an Alabama community, the PAWS group at Patterson, a community service club, will head to a high school that was destroyed by a tornado in 2007. The students will help plant a garden at the rebuilt school and create a scholarship for a local student to “pay it forward” in the community in Alabama.

The funding was made possible thanks to a $30,000 grant from SimplexGrinnell and Tyco.

“SimplexGrinnell and Tyco are proud to support this collaborative effort to expand United Way Youth Venture,” said Dave Baer, Vice President of Marketing at SimplexGrinnell, a Tyco International company. “We strongly believe in Youth Venture’s power to change the world, strengthen our communities and create the next generation of leaders.”

The original program began in North Central Massachusetts though a partnership with the local United Way there and SimplexGrinnell and Tyco. United Way of Central Maryland will also launch a program in Howard County and Baltimore City next year. It is now one of a handful of United Way’s nationwide with Youth Venture programs.

About United Way of Central Maryland
For more than 80 years, United Way of Central Maryland (UWCM) has been the region’s human service leader. Its mission is to improve people’s lives by mobilizing the caring power of our communities. UWCM supports programs and initiatives in the city of Baltimore, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford and Howard counties. UWCM is dedicated to education, income and health - making sure children get the early child care they need to succeed in school, that young adults graduate, that families have the means to access affordable and stable housing and that people are free from violence and abuse at home. By encouraging all people in central Maryland to give, advocate or volunteer, UWCM wants to show the power of living united. It’s about connecting people and creating communities. For more information, visit www.uwcm.org or call 410.547.8000.

About United Way Youth Venture
In 2002, United Way of North Central Massachusetts, in partnership with Ashoka, founded United Way Youth Venture, a unique and collaborative partnership that helps schools launch lasting social ventures that create positive impact in the community. These schools integrate United Way Youth Venture into their curriculum, after-school activities and host special-events. For additional information, visit www.uwyv.org.

About SimplexGrinnell
SimplexGrinnell, a Tyco International company, provides a comprehensive array of fire alarm, fire sprinkler, fire suppression, integrated security, communications and nurse call systems and services. With one million customers, 150 local offices, and over 200 years of history in the fire business, SimplexGrinnell is the leader in fire and life safety. For additional information or to locate the nearest SimplexGrinnell district office, visit www.simplexgrinnell.com