Hello Friends!
We are eager to introduce you to a new and exciting chapter for the Inner
City Youth Charitable Foundation (ICYCF). Please take a few minutes to become familiar with recent changes to
our programs, expresses our thanks, and requests your support to benefit inner
city youth. We are excited for the changes that have occurred with ICYCF and have already seen the great impact this foundation has in the lives of our participants.
Changes to Our Program
For over twenty years our Summer Quarters (boys) and Summer Jam (girls)
programs have helped inner city youth step out of their harsh environments and
build experiences and relationships that nourish their hope for a better
future. For many we witnessed these seeds of hope become a reality. Therefore,
we were of course saddened when recently informed that BYU-Idaho is no longer
able to co-sponsor the Summer Quarters and Summer Jam programs. However, as we reflected
on the impact of these programs over the last two decades and the current needs
of inner city youth, we were determined to continue our mission.
After months of research, interviews, and thoughtful discussion we
determined to develop a new mentorship and scholarship program that was
launched in Fall of 2015. The new program has expanded on many of the successful
components of Summer Quarters and Summer Jam including: close mentorship with
positive role models currently attending college, visits to Chicago from
college mentors/counselors, trips for the youth to the Utah/Idaho area to
explore the outdoors and campus life, cultural events, teaching of basic life
skills, and deepening of faith and spiritual experience. In addition, the new
program offers year round contact with college mentors who help the
youth develop and complete a thorough college preparation plan. All of the
youth who successfully complete the program and are accepted to one of our
partner universities will be offered a needs-based college scholarship.
Expressing Thanks
While we wish we could personally honor each individual who contributes
either time or financial support to ICYCF, there are two individuals who
deserve our sincerest gratitude. For over 15 years Robyn Bergstrom and Grover
Wray of BYU-Idaho have given thousands of hours and an unquantifiable amount of
love and charity to the inner city youth. On behalf of the hundreds of youth in
our programs we thank them and wish them the best in their future endeavors.
While Robyn and Grover will no longer be directing our summer programs, they
have both agreed to stay on as advisors and contribute to making our future
programs a success. In honor of Robyn and Grover the ICYCF board has elected to
name the newly founded girls and boys college scholarships in their honor.
