Youth Development:

MY Project USA's After-School Programs Celebrate Success Stories As School Year Comes To Close

We are so very proud of all of the students at Eakin Elementary School and West High School that participated in our after-school programs this school year. 

MY Project USA held celebrations at both schools in recent days to celebrate all of their successes. At Eakin, MY Project USA Education Manager Jenna Herron and staffers Stephanie Bassham, Allison Bassham, Aleah Gossett and Liz Kehres handed out carnations and medals to students who participated in our Rise after-school program. Several parents were on hand to join the festivities and everyone enjoyed pizza and ice cream treats.

The RISE program is offered by MY Project USA through a grant from the Ohio Department of Education. RISE offers students in grades 3-5 a safe and fun place for students to learn and grove educationally, build friendships, be safe and make memories. Thank you to all of our staffers, including MY Project USA Education Consultant Dr. Sharon Watkins and Youth Program Director Katana Mullen, for all of their hard work at Eakin this school year.

Drayden Says MY Project USA's Round-Up Program is a 'Win-Win'

At West, MY Project USA celebrated the progress of students who took part in our Round-Up after-school program. Jenna, Katana and Dr. Watkins were joined by MY Project USA Founder & Executive Director Zerqa Abid and staffer Todd Zidel for a party in the WHS library.

MY Project USA handed out the final Rodeo gift cards to students who completed the final Rodeo challenge of the school year. There was also a pizza party with ice cream treats, and certificates were also handed out to several students.

We would also like to thank graduating senior Drayden Ratliff, who thoughtfully spoke to us about his experience in the program. Click on the image above or here to hear from him. Good luck in college, Drayden!

We conclude the school year by offering our humble thanks to Dr. Watkins, Katana, Jenna, Todd, Stephanie, Allison, Aleah, Liz and everyone else who made our after-school programs a huge success.

MY Project USA would also like to thank the Ohio Department of Education and the United Way of Central Ohio for their support of our programs! We are already looking forward to the fall, but we also know we see many of the same youngsters at our series of MY Summer Expedition weekly camps and in other programs at the Hilltop Youth Empowerment Center over the coming months.

Hilltop Tigers: 

Generous Donation of Name Brand Soccer Equipment Will Help Hilltop Tigers in Days, Months to Come

MY Project USA would like to thank Melissa Bogner, her family and other members of the Dublin United soccer program for their exceptionally kind gift of equipment for our Hilltop Tigers.

Melissa and her crew recently visited the Hilltop Youth Empowerment Center on to drop off the items. They were able to meet with Hilltop Tigers coaches Ali Jeylani and Mohamed "Speedy" Ahmed, MY Project USA Founder & Executive Director Zerqa Abid and other staffers. It was great to catch up with Melissa weeks after she kindly bought the Under-11 Hilltop Tigers squad dinner after a game between the Tigers and a team that featured one of Melissa's sons in Dublin.

In case you missed it, you can read more about that evening in Dublin here.

We received a generous donation of name-brand soccer balls, water bottles, socks, bags, cleats and more. Thank you again to Melissa and everyone else who made the special moment happen.

Youth Development:

Please Help MY Project USA Continue to Feed Children in Columbus This Summer

Our 'Sponsor a Meal' Campaign Aims to Help Fund Meals for Children

With the school year coming to a conclusion, it is even more imperative to make sure at-risk children in Columbus have access to food. MY Project USA continues to try to provide an oasis in what is a well-known food desert.

We all know that hungry children are easy prey, especially in the Hilltop – an area that lacks places to buy affordable, high-quality fresh food. A warm meal could give leverage to drug dealers, pimps or any criminal looking to entice a hungry child into committing crimes or trap them in human trafficking.

That is why we started food distribution as soon as we embarked on our journey of protecting our youth several years ago. The latest way we have attempted to combat this problem is by opening MY Community Cafe in March. All proceeds of this pay-forward cafe located at the Hilltop Youth Empowerment Center (3275 Sullivant Ave.) go to help us feed all children, elderly, homeless and other clients in Columbus.

Unfortunately, it is not enough on its own. We have a goal of serving 100,000 meals in 2023, and it is extremely important to do everything we can to keep children safe. Feeding them is an important way to accomplish that goal.

Please consider donating the our "Sponsor a Meal" campaign today or by ordering some delicious food from MY Community Cafe. 

Order. Donate. Feed a Future!

Family Platinum Card: 

Don't Forget to Register for Our New Family Platinum Card

Eligible Families Receive Discounts, Holiday Gifts, 'Fast Pass' & More!

MY Project USA is still actively registering clients for our new Family Platinum Card. This brand new initiative is FREE and has several benefits.

Benefits Include:

• 20% off discount at MY Community Cafe and Global Gifts & Thrift
• Monthly prize raffles
• Holiday gifts
• “Fast Pass” (a way to speed up the sign-in process) for MY Project USA events    
• Special “Members Only” events
• And MORE to be announced!

Please come to the Hilltop Youth Empowerment Center (3275 Sullivant Ave. Columbus, OH 43204) to sign up.

MY Summer Expedition: 

Our First Weekly Summer Camp Starts Monday & It's Not Too Late To Sign Up For All 8 of Our Camps

Students Going into Grades 3-7 Are Eligible to Participate! Space is LIMITED!

Our MY Summer Expedition series of FREE weekly summer camps begin on Monday, June 5, and we still have a limited number of spaces available for children to participate.

We have a wide variety of types of camps we'll be hosting this summer – eight weeks full of fun! Our first MY Summer Expedition camp will be our Environment Camp, and it will provide a great opportunity for children to get outside and learn by doing. Led by Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks instructor Tanya Taylor, this camp will allow you to explore nature, see animals and visit nearby barks.

Elementary school students from grades 3-5 and middle school students from grades 6-7 are eligible, but space is limited! Interested in learning more or registering your children? Please call MY Project USA Education Manager Jenna Herron at (614) 407-6701 or email her at educationmanager@myprojectusa.org.

Thank you to the Ohio Department of Education, the city of Columbus & the ADAMH Board of Franklin County for their support!

Global Gifts & Thrift: 

Head to Global Gifts & Thrift in Hilliard for a Unique & Fun Shopping Experience – Shop. Donate. Build a Life!

We're Located in the Hilliard Shopping Center Next to the BMV

Looking for a fun and unique shopping experience? Visit Global Gifts & Thrift in Hilliard today!

We proudly offer an international, multicultural collection of gifts, artifacts, decorative items, clothing, shoes, household items and more. All proceeds from the store help finance MY Project USA's programs in Columbus.

SHOP. DONATE. BUILD A LIFE.

📍 4730 Cemetery Rd. (Next to the Hilliard BMV)
⏰️ Tuesday-Friday 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

MY Deah's Warehouse:

First MY Deah's Warehouse Summer Garage Sale Set For Saturday

All Proceeds Help Fund MY Project USA's Programs!

Got plans for Saturday? Now you do! 

Head to MY Deah's Warehouse at 4004 Fondorf Dr. on Saturday, June 3 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. for the first of our summer garage sales. We have great appliances, furniture, television sets, kitchenware, apparel and more at great prices. 

All proceeds from purchases will go to help fund MY Project USA's programs. Help us continue to serve at-risk children and families.

Annual Report: 

Have You Read Our Annual Report Yet? It's 32 Pages of Great Info!

If you have not yet read our latest annual report, click on the image above (or the button below) to download a PDF of the 32-page report. We did our best to put eight years of work in these pages, but that's nowhere near enough to attempt to tell the full story. 

MY Helpline:

Rent & Utilities Support Available At MY Project USA

We have been working very hard in securing grants and building collaboration with other partners to help our clients. Thanks to The Columbus Foundation, United Way of Central Ohio, and IMPACT Community Action, we are still able to help more of our families with their rent and utilities. If you or someone you know needs help, please ask them to contact us at (614) 905-0977 or helpadmin@myprojectusa.org.

MY Deah's Warehouse:

12 Locations In Columbus To Drop Off Donations – Truck Pick-Up Available For Large Donations

You can now drop off your donations of new and gently used clothes, shoes, books, toys and other small non-breakable items in a donation box near you. These locations include: 

• Noor Islamic Cultural Center –  5001 Wilcox Rd. Dublin, OH 43016
• Masjid Nimrah – 4501 Refugee Rd. Columbus, OH 43232
• MAS Youth Center – 4615 Northtowne Blvd. Columbus, OH 43229
• Turkish American Society of Ohio (TASO) – 2885 W. Dublin Granville Rd. Columbus, OH 43235
• Ahlul Bayt Society – 2580 W. Dublin Granville Rd. Columbus, OH 43235
• The First Congregational Church – 444 E. Broad St. Columbus, OH 43215
• MY Deah's Warehouse – 4004 Fondorf Dr. Columbus, OH 43228. (Business Hours Only)
• Global Gifts & Thrift – 4730 Cemetery Rd. Hilliard, OH 43206. (Business Hours Only)
• Heritage Christian Church (NEW) – 7413 Maxtown Rd. Westerville, OH 43082
• Omar Ibn El-Khattab Masjid (NEW) – 580 Riverview Dr. Columbus, OH 43202
• The Destiny Center (NEW) – 1561 Old Leonard Ave. Columbus, OH 43219
• Bethel International United Methodist Church (NEW) – 1220 Bethel Rd. Columbus, OH 43220

We are looking for more locations. If interested in helping us or have any other questions, please contact us at warehouse@myprojectusa.org.