These Youth Have Beaten All The Odds!!!

Celebrating The Graduation of Sharmarke, Mukumbira & Others

Together We Built A Legacy of Hope & Prosperity For These Youth & Their Families

Your Continued Support Will Enable Us To Protect & Empower More

Dear Family, 

My emotions are very high these days. With the constant online sight of children and innocent civilians being massacred on a daily basis in Palestine; more news from Sudan, Yemen, and Congo about similar atrocities; and the anniversary of Issa's tragic departure approaching very fast, it's very hard to feel happiness and stay positive, but then God grants us with blessings that bring us back to life and give us hope and confidence in our work. It reinforces our whys and we refocus on what we can control while we pray for what we cannot. 

Last week, I received one of the most joyous news of my life and it just revived the commitment of my entire team here at MY Project USA. A kid who survived gun violence, evaded gangs, avoided drugs, had no guidance and support growing up, whose two brothers are in jail, who was denied from couple schools because they thought he could not graduate at all. This kid has beaten all the odds and has surprised us all by completing all his graduation requirement and is graduating on time for his age group. 

I am beyond humbled, grateful and of course super proud of this young man known as Sharmarke Abdi!!! 

Another young star is Mukumbira Mukumbira (MK). He also faced many challenges like Sharmarke did, but he took advantage of the support provided by MYPUSA and has completed all of his graduation requirement. They are graduating on June 14, 2024.

These are two of our young soccer champions that we provided Issa Jeylani memorial scholarship to support in their academics and train them as soccer coaches. While other three recipients dropped off of the program these two did not. They are now being promoted as coaches in our Hilltop Tigers program. They are also getting ready to attend college and other professional training programs. 

The great news is that they are not the only youth from our programs graduating this year. There are many more. In addition to more individuals from our MY Leaders and Afterschool Academic programs at the youth center and at West High Schools and Briggs High School. At West High, 196 students of 200 students are  graduating this year. MY Project USA has provided daily academic support to about 100 of those students. 

This has been a journey that I started from my kitchen less than ten years ago, and with all praise due to God, we are now harvesting our crop in the form of these refined youth being able to graduate from schools, advocating for their communities, volunteering to uplift their neighborhoods and serving as big brothers and sisters to many young people around them. 

All of this was not possible without the support of Ohio Department of Education, Franklin County, The City of Columbus, United Way of Central Ohio, The Columbus Foundation. The Ingram White Castle Foundation, The Siemer Foundation, The Wendy's Foundation and the support of all of you, the donors, volunteers and staff of MY Project USA. I couldn't have done this without each one of you!

This is why I want to celebrate these amazing success stories with you. Let's make them our sources of inspiration and double up our investment in these youths.

This newsletter has several important action items and requests of support. Please see the details below and help us in whatever way you can. Each one of these initiatives help us meet our main goal of protecting and empowering our youth. 

In solidarity with youth & families,

Zerqa Abid

Founder, President & Executive Director

Urgent Call To Support Summer Hot Meals 

MY Project USA Will Serve About 200 Meals Daily This Summer

Please Help Us Reach Our Goal Of $25000

Here is a great opportunity for you to support protect and empower children in need in your own backyard by providing food for the participants. 

MY Project USA's summer program will keep more than 300 children away from gangs and violence this year. These kids will be benefitting from various programs at MY Project USA including eight Summer Expedition Camps, MY Leaders, Hilltop Tigers, and Hilltop Youth Soccer Summer League. In addition to participating in MY Leaders program, many highschool youth will be benefitting from our academic enrichment classes including Apex Labs and additional tutoring. 

While these programs are mainly covered by grants from the Ohio Department of Education and Franklin County, we need help with their meals. Our estimated total cost for just summer meals is $24,500. We are short by $17,000. 

With your support, we can feed all children healthy nutritious snacks and hot meals prepared in house to help meet the needs of their growing bodies and mind. These meals will be only meals in the day for a majority of our participants. 

Thank you for your generosity and presence in our village. 

Hilltop Free Clinic Seeks Volunteer Healthcare Providers

MY Project USA's New Initiative Will Fill Another Void In The Services Available On The Westside

MY Project USA is pleased to announce our new initiative, MY Project USA Hilltop Free Clinic, a student-run free clinic at the Hilltop Youth Empowerment Center which has been in development since August 2022. The clinic is run by Ohio University and Ohio State University medical students and clinicians and aims to provide free, community-based primary care services. The Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio is home to a large number of immigrants and refugees. Many individuals are uniquely disadvantaged in terms of access to healthcare because of language, cultural, and insurance barriers, and for a subset of the community, documentation status. 

Our first Orientation Brunch is on June 23rd. Whether you're a potential volunteer, a curious community member, or just interested in what we do, this brunch is the perfect opportunity to get involved and make a difference in our community. We can't wait to see you there!

Amazing Opportunity For New American Youth In Central Ohio

Learn How To Be An Advocate And A Leader In Your Community! 

In today's political and socio-economical environment, it is very easy to get lost in frustration and hopelessness. It is easy to become numb to the things that must change and learn to settle for less. But that does NOT need to be the way! Sign your kids up for MY Leader's Summer Advocate Program where they will learn how to be a leader, how to advocate for themselves and others, how to stand up against injustice and how to navigate society while making a difference and making their voices heard. Registration for the summer program is open! Do not miss this opportunity! 

2024 Day of Arafat - Iftar Signup for Local Muslims in Need

Here is a great an opportunity for your children to share their blessing on the Day of Arafat! Please bring them down to the Hilltop Youth Center to pack food and Eid Goody bags for local children and families in need in Columbus. 

As in previous years, MY Project USA plans to distribute hot meals to approximately 500 individuals on the Day of Arafat, which falls on Tuesday, Saturday June 15 this year. This food will be distributed to families in need in two neighborhoods by our youth leaders. You are welcome to cook, bring cooked food or send us money so we can order from MY Community Cafe on your behalf. Families are welcome to bring their kids to help with packing. 

After School Program: West High School Round Up Year End Celebration! 

Help Support Our Summer Programs!

The After School Program concluded the school year at West High School with an end of the year celebration for the Round Up Incentive Program! Special prizes were given to kids who completed the most number of assignments. Our winners are: 1st Place: Aaliyah Brown - 165 assignments, 2nd Place: Gavin James - 91 assignments and 3rd Place: Angela Perez - 72 assignments. Students were also given raffle tickets for completed assignments and overall character. The winners were Nyah, Asia, Kimberly and Austin. 

The Round Up Incentive Program, and many other after school activities (including field trips) are made possible by donations and grants. Please donate in order to help us continue to support kids through the school year and in our Summer programs starting on June 10th. 

Celebrating Our Hilltop Tigers at the End of Another Season! 

The current Soccer season has come to an end and the time has come to celebrate the amazing young players that make up the Hilltop Tigers, especially the season's U13/U14 MVPs: Ahmed Yerrow and Abdisalan Ali! Ahmed and Abdisalan consistently demonstrated true sportsmanship and dedication throughout the season. Their hard work and contributions to the team is unmatched and irreplaceable! 

The Hilltop Tigers Club was founded to help kids in the Hilltop stay away from gangs, drugs and gun violence by providing them a safe and productive outlet to motivate them to stay off the streets. Our Hilltop Tigers consistently go above and beyond expectations, and the soccer program is a testament to what a difference a positive outlet can make in saving youth from going down the wrong path. This program is vital to the success of so many kids and your donations help make it possible! This year the Hilltop Tigers Soccer Club is funded partially by grants from the Ohio Department of Education, Franklin County, and State of Ohio. Donations from the community and smaller grants from several foundations and charity funds help us cover all the turfs. Thank you for being a part of our Village. 

Our Hilltop Youth Soccer League is starting on June 11th. We hope to recruit more than 300 youth in Hilltop this year through our league. Your support to this league will go a long way in protecting and empowering each one of them. Please donate generously. If you own a business, please check the sponsorship opportunities as well. 

MY Deah's Warehouse:

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

We Are Looking For More Locations

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: 

   • Ahlul Bayt Society – 2580 W. Dublin Granville Rd. Columbus, OH 43235
   • Bethel International United Methodist Church – 1220 Bethel Rd. Columbus, OH 43220
   • Covenant Baptist Church – 5100 Dierker Rd. Columbus, OH 43220
   • Heritage Christian Church – 7413 Maxtown Rd. Westerville, OH 43082
   • MAS Youth Center – 4615 Northtowne Blvd. Columbus, OH 43229
   • Masjid Nimrah – 4501 Refugee Rd. Columbus, OH 43232
   • MY Deah's Warehouse – 4004 Fondorf Dr. Columbus, OH 43228. (Business Hours Only)
   • Noor Islamic Cultural Center – 5001 Wilcox Rd. Dublin, OH 43016
   • Omar Ibn El-Khattab Masjid – 580 Riverview Dr. Columbus, OH 43202
   • The Destiny Center – 1561 Old Leonard Ave. Columbus, OH 43219
   • The First Congregational Church – 444 E. Broad St. Columbus, OH 43215
   • Turkish American Society of Ohio (TASO) – 2885 W. Dublin Granville Rd. Columbus, OH 43235

MY Project USA is searching for more locations across central Ohio where people can leave their donations of new and gently used clothes, shoes, books, toys, and other small non-breakable items. We need your support!

We will collect the items from the bins weekly (or more frequently as needed) and sort them in our warehouse. Once organized, we offer the items for free to clients in the communities we serve. Some items are also sold at Global Gifts & Thrift, a retail location in Hilliard that is based on the Goodwill model. All proceeds of these sales go toward funding our programs.

Our organization will ensure that the area around the bins remains clean. Please contact Noorullah Shinwari at (614) 817-9159 with questions or if you are interested in partnering with us. Thank you!

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