Maywood Mural Unveiling

Photo Credit: Saffron Hurt

On Sunday, October 24rd, Maywood Youth Mentoring, had it’s unveiling of the new murals for the peace garden. Teens and young adults within the community were selected to create beautiful artwork that will be displayed at the garden on the topic of” Community Love.” One of the selected youth was Dakota Lopez, who created a beautiful piece on continuing growth. TFD had a previous mentee, Saffron Hurt, photograph this event and show off the great work these individuals have created. Saffron says, “It was a warm homey experience. Everyone was so nice and to see them take pride in improving Maywood through the garden warmed my heart".

At TFD, our goal is to center Maywoodian led organizations and residents who are working constantly to improve the community.

Photo Credit: Saffron Hurt

Black Panther Event

Photo Credit: Ross LaSalle

On October 15th at the Fred Hampton House, people from all across Proviso Township celebrated the 55th anniversary of the Black Panther Party. This event was hosted by The Hampton House, Chairman Fred Hampton Jr. and Akua Njeri. This event was not only to celebrate the 55 years of the party but also to unveil the new “People’s Bench”(the refurbished Hampton family bench), official Little Free Library, and the updated Community Fridge & Pantry via ribbon cutting ceremony.

The hopes for the new space is to teach the younger generation of the impact of Fred Hampton’s life and legacy had and continues to have in Maywood, the Proviso District, and American History.

The collective of organizations involved included Save the Hampton House, Black Panther Party Cubs, Best of Proviso Township, Engaged Berwyn, Suburban Unity Alliance, Maywood Fine Arts Association, Immanuel Lutheran Church and No Child Goes Hungry.

We sent a spring mentee, Ross LaSalle to document this event through photos and video. What an honor it was to be a part of such an inspiring ceremony. We can only hope to continue to grow in our partnership with The Hampton House, and Fred Hampton Jr.

“It was inspiring and amazing being in the presence of such historical black individuals.”

- Ross

Photo Credit: Ross LaSalle

Video Group Project

Photo Credit: Mentees

This workshop led by Jeremy, is a collaboration with the Quinn Center in highlighting stories of the seniors within the community. The Quinn Center is a community partner that TFD has the opportunity to collaborate with from time to time. The mentees learned how to prepare for a video shoot and interview. They also had the chance to film and lead the interviews themselves. One of the best ways to grow and learn is by doing, which the mentees did a lot of in this project. We can’t wait to share with you the completed project, and stories of our in our community!

Photo Credit: Mentees

Building A Website

For the second half of today’s workshop, Jasmine led a mini lesson on how to build a website through Squarespace. The mentees learned how to create a website and design it based on what pertains to the business or organization they are building it for. The website designing process includes colors for the website, pictures they will use, the layout that the website will have and much more! It is a fun process and very easy to use. The mentees enjoyed the chance to see what they could potentially do for a website of their own!

The Importance Of Mental Health

Photo Credit: Mya Rose

In today’s workshop led by Sarah from Yo Soy Ella, the mentees discussed mental health and the importance of taking care of yourself. Sarah has joined us a few times in past mentorships to talk through tough times and managing feelings. This was a great chance for everyone to practice communicating these things in a safe space with people they feel comfortable with. It’s always a good thing to have people there to support you and help to guide you through a tough situation.

Photo Credit: Mya Rose