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ManaTEENS
The largest locally based teen volunteer initiative in the nation with thousands of teen volunteers contributing inexcess of 1.7 million hours of service annually in southwest Florida! Youth Leadership, Service andVoice!
History
In 1994, Laura Lockwood (12) and Kat McKell (17) were bored teenagerslooking for a creative outlet in theircommunity of Bradenton, Florida. Daughters of anactive volunteer, the two sisters recruited 20 of their friends and created ManaTEENs, a countywide club for teens interested in volunteering. The founding members worked hard to attain the trust and respect of local nonprofit organizations and change their perceptions of young people. Initially, the group couldn't find many organizations willing to see the value in youth volunteers, so they created their own projects, a trademark of the program today.
Thanks in large part to a grant from Learn and Serve America, ManaTEENs were empowered to promote youth voice and philanthropy. A council of ManaTEENs was created to approve funding proposals from local nonprofits. Through this work, the ManaTEENS gained the respect of area charities and began working with them to create volunteer opportunities that fully tap the energies and talents of young people.
Today, there are more than 14,000 active ManaTEENs who not only assist 572 local agencies with volunteer needs, but create, implement, evaluate, sustain, and replicate 92 signature service programs.
 Officially-
We mobilize youth and resources to identify and address local needs through volunteerism, leadership, and voice!
The ManaTEEN Club assists students, ages 8-21, in fulfilling and documenting community service hours as recommended and/or required for high school or college while providing assistance to residents and not-for-profit agencies in Southwest Florida. Members are encouraged to participate in leadership training opportunities to assist in meeting area needs.
Unofficially-
ManaTEENs enjoy "getting things done!" Where else will you find boys and girls ranging in ages 8-21 from every school in the area working together to make our community a better place to live?????
Youth Service, Leadership, and Voice!
Serving Manatee County since 1994 with over 14,300 members. Youth ages 12-21 with connection to 578 local not-for-profits, communities of faith, and government organizations- offering hundreds of short term and on-going opportunities to serve each year! Get Involved TODAY!
Community Opportunities! Civic Engagement!
There are over 500 not-for-profit organizations, schools, hospitals, communities of faith, and retirement centers registered with Volunteer Services of Manatee County, Inc. (Home of the ManaTEEN Club) who rely on volunteers to assist them in providing services to residents of Manatee County. While most agencies utilize groups f ManaTEENs for special events, many can only accommodate one or two teen volunteers at any given time in their administrative offices and areas of operation. Request for individual teen volunteers are called into our office on a daily basis and ManaTEENs are encouraged to check their emails, call the office, and/or check our website regularly to learn more about those opportunities and how they can be involved. Whether you are available after school, weekends, or evenings, there are many local organizations that need you!
There are hundreds of volunteer and leadership opportunities with animals, children, seniors, environment, disaster relief, safety, technology and much more!
ManaTEENs are empowered to identify needs and develop programs to actually address those needs.
Here are some recent examples of projects created and sustained by ManaTEENs that YOU can get involved in. We can help you create and lead your our program too! Let us know if you see a need in the community that's not being met or if you have a project idea - YOU CAN LEAD YOUR OWN!
Big Breathe and Bark , or Meow!: ManaTEENs have collected numerous donations to purchase dog and cat oxygen masks so that all of Manatee County*s fire trucks can be equip with long snout, short snout, and feline recovery masks.
Home Safety for Seniors: ManaTEENs visit senior citizens in their homes, assessing safety needs and delivering $100 in free safety products, donated by local home improvement stores.
Reef Rakers: Youth become SCUBA certified, then dive to maintain hundreds of artificial reef balls (which the teens create) in Tampa Bay. Their efforts encourage maximum utilization of the artificial reef by local marine life. These underwater cleanups are our most unique and exciting service-learning projects yet! www.reefrakers.org
ManaTEENs have been featured on the cover of US News and World Report as well as GMA!
Club Eligibility
Any youth 8-21 enrolled in public, private, alternative and charter elementary /middle / high school or college in Manatee County can become a ManaTEEN. Complete the simple application and have a parent or a guardian sign it and send it to 5131 Manatee Avenue West -Bradenton, FL 34209 or fax it to (941) 761-0458 or, even better, drop it off personally so we can meet you! We have lots of service based scholarships we offer to graduating ManaTEENs - so get started today!
Rules of Membership
We realize how busy members stay with academics, sports, jobs, church and other service/school clubs - so attendance and participation is NOT mandatory. However, we encourage all ManaTEENs to volunteer whenever possible. Our members can decide how active they want to be - once you join, you are considered a member until you graduate. Your service history is completely up to you!
Communications
Upon receipt of your application, we will establish your own personal file. We keep file with your service record until you graduate from college, whether you un active or inactive. Please don*t assume that an organization or another club you assisted to submit your service hours. Take initiative and call/email in your own hours. Most projects/events ManaTEENs host will have a sign-in sheet on site. However, if you do something that we did not host please email us what you did, where you did it, who you assisted and total hours so that we can keep your file up to date. We want to hear from YOU not your parents! You'll receive 2 emails a week with updates and volunteer opportunities that you can get involved in! Also, we will establish a 1-800Volunteer.org username and password for you, so that you can research and signup for opportunities and manage your service online!
There are so many scholarship and award opportunities based completely on your service - so get started now!
If you have any questions ... please call (941) 761-3207 or email us at ManaTeens@volunteermanatee.org
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