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  • 22 Mar 2024 3:00 PM | Christopher Lunsford (Administrator)

    Hey-hey guys, gals and non-binary pals! Chris here, bringing you an update in this, the falsest of Springs! (seriously, I'm floating between two entirely different wardrobes over here. MAKE UP YOUR MIND, Weather-Chan!)

    You know, we work pretty hard around here. There's a lot going on in the Commonwealth and we at Youth MOVE PA want to do our best to make an impact and ensure young people have a voice! But sometimes, just sometimes, we like to recharge with some fun and games…which is exactly what we did this week! Here are some shots of our staff playing as hard as we work:

    A group of people at an arcade

    Little did they know how competitive this game of Mario Kart was about to become!


    Two people smiling sitting in chairs at an arcade

    Despite making my teeth chatter, simulated rollercoasters are still pretty fun!


    A group of people smiling for the camera in front of a row of slot machine games

    No outing is complete without a group photo!

    Nothing says wellness like some fun with good peeps, am I right? Now we're all back at our respective homes spread out across the state, we're feeling more ready than ever for the season ahead. Perfect timing too because next week, we'll be heading out to Lewisburg for a Youth Mental Health Summit! The summit is hosted by the Project Aware Student Interns at the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit (CSIU). If you're going to be there, be sure to look out for us as we'll be sharing our resources there for the entire event!

    As we move into spring, I encourage you all to take advantage of the sunlight! Winter can be a tough time for our mental health, and with the change in season can come a change in mindset. Be kind to yourselves. Be kind to each other. Until next time, keep your heads up, and your hearts strong!

  • 1 Mar 2024 11:51 AM | Anonymous

    Happy Friday everyone!! Zo here wishing you a happy first day of March

    How was everyone's Leap Day? Ours was a lot of fun here at YMPA. We finished up the last day of our Peer Generation Youth Empowerment training in Beaver County with the Copeland Center, which was awesome! We truly love doing this training and introducing young people to the foundations of peer support and resiliency. Plus, we all got some delicious treats from Oram's Donuts, so who can complain?

     Four people smiling with a box of donuts

    In other news, we held the first ever meeting of our brand new YMPA Advisory Council last week! This group of passionate youth and young adults will help advise YMPA and shape the mission and vision of our organization. We had a fun first meeting of ice breakers and getting to know more about Youth MOVE PA and what we're all about.

    That's all from me for now! Thanks for reading, and have a beautiful rest of your day :-)

    - Zo

  • 16 Feb 2024 10:37 AM | Anonymous

    Hey there Youth MOVErs! Chris here, and I'm pretty pumped about what's been happening this week.

    On Tuesday we supported the PEAL Center in hosting a virtual Youth Mental Health / Disability panel where three young people spoke to a large group of professionals and youth about their lived experience with mental health and disabilities. We got to learn straight from youth how they were impacted by stigma, what the overlap of mental health and disability felt like, and how they practice self-care and support.

    A screenshot of a Zoom meeting with several people smiling

    Stephanie, Christian, and Andre (seen in the photo) all did AMAZING jobs and really spoke from the heart in a way that I think really resonated with everyone there. My heart was so full from listening to them! Ahhh I'm getting teary just thinking about it…We're so proud of you all!

    In other Youth MOVE PA news, we've just hired our latest Sources of Strength Trainer, Julia Serao! She's bright and fun and is already making a wonderful addition to our staff, who are delivering this incredible program to schools across the state. Check out her full bio on our Contact Us page to learn more.

    New Employee Spotlight: Julia Serao

     Alright, that's all from me this week. You all stay warm out there and don't forget to be kind to your minds and look out for each other. Keep your heads up and your hearts strong!

    - Chris

  • 2 Feb 2024 9:06 AM | Anonymous

    Hey Youth MOVErs! Zo here!

    YMPA has had a busy start to the new year! Last week, we headed to Beaver County to attend their Youth Ambassador Program event. We had a great time meeting an impressive group of high schoolers who are doing awesome work to promote mental health in their communities.

    Our Program Director, Kevin, wearing a Youth MOVE PA hoodie and standing with a sweet older dog.

    Also, we got to meet some sweet therapy dogs :)

    We've also been busy with our get-to-know-you interviews for the applicants to our brand-new Advisory Council. It's been a real treat getting to meet so many of you! We're hoping to make our final decisions soon and have our first Council meeting by the end of February. We can't wait to get started with this first step toward making YMPA a more youth-led, youth-driven organization.

    I also can't WAIT for an exciting project we're launching soon - our new Discord server!! If you don't know what a Discord server is, it's basically like a big group chat where people with a shared interest can gather together online. Chris, our Youth Coordinator, has been hard at work building the server to be a place where young people in Pennsylvania who are passionate about mental health can come and connect with one another and find resources. The server will be invite-only for Youth MOVE PA members and will be moderated by our staff for safety.

    Well, that's pretty much it for now! I'm feeling grateful to be a part of this awesome team and I'm excited for what we'll accomplish in the coming year.

    Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a great rest of your day!

    - Zo

  • 19 Jan 2024 12:27 PM | Christopher Lunsford (Administrator)

    Hello Youth Movers! Chris here. We just had our quarterly membership and allies meeting this week, and I thought I'd share a bit of what we talked about and what we're up to. We're developing new programs, existing ones that continue to MOVE across the state, and are increasing our advocacy efforts. Let's dive in!

    YMPA is about to conduct interviews for members of our soon-to-be-formed Youth Advisory Council! This council would be a group of young people ages 16-29, and two junior members as young as 14, who would guide Youth MOVE PA's activities using their experience, values, and expertise to ensure that we are operating in a way that is true to today's youth values. That's right, Movers, that means YOU can help us take the next step to becoming truly youth-driven and make an impact on the issues that YOU care about! 

    We've been hard at work in the Transition Age Youth and Young Adult (TAYYA) Subcommittee of our state's Mental Health Planning Council (MHPC) as well. YMPA has supported the development of an Advocacy 101 workshop that will be going for a test-drive soon. So if you've ever wanted to learn how to become an advocate, let us know and we'll tell you how to you can check it out!

    We've got a whole bunch of upcoming trainings for FREE from now through May, such as our youth-friendly Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and more! Check out the Training and Education tab on our website for more info.

    Finally, our school-based programming is continuing to crush it out there! Sources of Strength, our newest program, has been offered in 3 schools now and continues to gain traction. Our partnership with The Copeland Center's youth-focused "Doors to Wellbeing" program continues going strong as we bring their Peer Generation: Youth Empowerment (PGYE) curriculum to more students! PGYE is about to train the 3rd cohort of Pennsylvanian students next month in Beaver County, with many more to follow!

    Phew, you made it! It's been an exciting time over here for sure, and even with all this snow and cold weather, YMPA continues to keep the fire burning! If you want to get involved or have any questions, shoot us an email at ympa@youthmovepa.org.

    That's all for now. I hope you're all staying warm out there. Remember to be kind to your minds and motivate others using your voices of experience. See you in the next one!  

  • 16 Oct 2023 8:38 AM | Kevin Puskaric (Administrator)


    Join the meeting on October 17th at 4pm here: 

    https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82958662228



  • 16 Aug 2023 2:19 PM | Christopher Lunsford (Administrator)

    This week YMPA's Sources of Strength team is in Maine to receive their training which will allow them to bring this awesome evidence-based program to schools all around Pennsylvania! They're hard at work learning all they can to bring the best quality of training they can to our young peers and the school staff who support them.

    While our staff work hard, they also play hard. Want to see what they're up to in real-time? Be sure to follow all of the fun adventures on our Facebook page! 

    Here's a sneak preview: May be an image of 5 people and textMay be an image of 3 people, people smiling, people studying, table and text

    Are you as excited as they are? You should be!

    It's always been one of our goals to reach youth in schools because we know that school is the place we spend much of our time as we grow into adulthood. A lot happens there and it can be hard to find emotional support when we need it most. Especially if we don't have access to support outside of school .

    Youth MOVE PA is finally ready to tackle school-based mental health and support young people where they're already at! Be on the lookout for opportunities to bring Sources of Strength to a school near you!

    To learn more about our Sources of Strength program, click here.

  • 31 May 2023 8:45 AM | Kevin Puskaric (Administrator)

    Speakers are Kevin Puskaric and Jamal Ford

    Recorded on Thursday, May 25th, 2023

    Watch the Webinar

    Understanding Co-occurring, where it begins, and how it grows.

    • When a mental health issue exists, whether diagnosed or not, we will learn how we are at risk of substance addiction.
    • And why a substance abuse addiction can trigger a mental health issue.
    • Often youth using drugs and alcohol are too young to understand or believe they are at risk of addiction.
    • Remember, there is no getting off this road once you have gone down it. You may be able to control your addiction/mental health issue, but it will always be with you, waiting for an opportunity to knock you off the wellness wagon.


  • 23 Nov 2022 6:59 AM | Kevin Puskaric (Administrator)

    Join us on December 20, 2022, for the TAYYA Subcommittee Meeting.

    The Subcommittee is made up of youth, young adults, and adult allies which will come together to create an advocating voice for transition age youth across Pennsylvania regarding mental health and substance use issues.

    Metting link for 12-20-2022 at 2pm: 

    Handouts for Subcommittee Attendees


  • 12 Sep 2022 6:35 AM | Kevin Puskaric (Administrator)

    The TAYYA Workgroup has officially become a Subcommittee of Mental Health Planning Council (MHPC)!!! 

    Join us on September 20, 2022, for the first meeting as a Subcommittee.

    The TAYYA Subcommittee will be made up of youth, young adults, and adult allies which will come together to create an advocating voice for transition age youth across Pennsylvania regarding mental health and substance use issues.

    Metting link for 9-20-2022 at 2pm: 

    https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82298865243


    Metting link for 9-20-2022 at 7pm:

    https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81315511671

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Youth MOVE PA

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Harrisburg, PA 17103

Office Phone:  717.221.1022

  
  




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