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by Tiffani Carcieri, YPI Staff Member
Youth Pride, Inc.’s (YPI) craving for wanderlust has skyrocketed since our partnership with The Sierra Club began last summer. The Sierra Club is a nationwide environmental organization that aims to celebrate and protect the environment. YPI was approached by the Rhode Island Chapter for the opportunity to partner with them on a new initiative, Inspiring Connections Outdoors (ICO). ICO is a sub-chapter that works exclusively on providing outdoor experiences and leadership opportunities to underserved and marginalized youth in RI. The goal is to establish relationships with agencies and organizations that provide services to these youth populations and bring them closer to nature. YPI is one of the first organizations to participate in the new chapter's activities and we’ve been tremendously successful in getting our youth out and traveling.
Kyle McCurdy, Outings Chair for the RI Chapter, has planned and facilitated monthly trips for our youth that are both physically and mentally engaging. Our inaugural outing was a trip to Narrow
River Kayaks in Narragansett where youth, while in tandem kayaks, learned about the surrounding marshland ecosystem. Our follow-up trip was to Barden Family Orchard in North Scituate where youth picked Pink Lady, Granny Smith, and Fuji apples to bring back to the center to be baked into pies. More locally, the Sierra Club rented part of the Providence Ice Skating Rink for a relaxing skate complimented by background holiday music. Most recently, Kyle took YPI staff and youth to Mystic Aquarium, where everyone especially enjoyed the 4D interactive film on sharks and the chance to feed anchovies to various aquatic inhabitants.We look forward to furthering our partnership with The Sierra Club and are excited at the endless possibilities for future outings.
Youth Pride Inc. provides support, education, and advocacy for LGBTQQ young people ages 9-23. Our Drop-in Center is at 473 Westminster Street, Providence, RI. Visit www.youthprideri.org, email info@ youthprideri.org, or call (401) 421-5626 for more info.