Positive youth are everywhere in North Minneapolis, and on May 5 they were out on Lyndale at the Lyndale Blooms with Youth event. The Lind Bohanon Neighborhood Association (LBNA) asked the youth of the Camden Youth Engagement Project how they would want to respond to the recent shootings of Michael Trinity and Richard Christianson in the Lind Bohanon neighborhood. Their response — do something positive in the community to let residents know all youth aren’t bad.
Many thanks to Council President Barb Johnson, CCP/Safe Shannon McDonough, Senator Linda Higgins, Jenny Lind Community Ed. Coordinator Linnea Hackett, the Camden Youth Engagement Project crew and the many LBNA neighborhood volunteers and board members who also attended and lent a green thumb and their support for the youth who were enthusiastic about making a difference in their community.
The event started with a brief welcome and words of celebration about our community and the youth by LBNA Chair Ann Moe. Once planting duties were finished, the kids took the planters to the different businesses along Lyndale and picked up litter along the commercial corridor. Council Member Johnson and Senator Higgins put gloves on and pitched in and everyone helped clean up and down Lyndale. Many thanks to our champion neighborhood volunteer Shirley Gish who staffed the booth in front of our office and made sure everyone signed in and had a cookie at the end of the day.
Thanks also to our local Lyndale Ave. business owners who were generous in their support. Kevin Aldwick, Lyn-Stop gas station, Jacki Smith, Minneapolis Recycling Inc., Dean Younkin, Younkin Trucking Inc, Kim Carlson, Allied Waste, and Patrick Huey, Gardner Camden Hardware graciously donated money, supplies, a garbage truck and their time to help the youth have a positive community event.
LBNA has been partnering on the Camden Youth Engagement project with Cleveland, Shingle Creek, and McKinley Neighborhood Associations, Jenny Lind and Lucy Craft Laney Community Education, Hennepin County SICE department, NorthWay Community Trust, 4-H, Youth Coordinating Board, and Wells Fargo for the past year. Their Cool Camden youth-friendly places asset map is available at www.scna-mpls.org.
The needs of our 16,000 youth in the Camden area under the age of 23 are continually growing as libraries and schools close. Donations collected during the event will go towards continuing the Lyndale Blooms with Youth throughout the summer, and supporting the Youth Engagement Project.