Commission on Children, Youth and Families Update

The question has arisen, what is the Commission on Children, Youth and Families, how long has it been around, what does it do for our two cities? 

Our Commission Chair, Tony Lewis, and I just did one of our Commission TV shows on SWOCC cable channel, CYF Spotlight, where we talked some about our Commission, its history, its purpose and its activities. For your information this particular show can be found at http://swoccstudios.pegcentral.com/player.php?video=2456db697b3ddecda4d4d21855e958fd. Or go to the SWOCC website and look up CYF Spotlight. All of our shows are archived there.

Since being organized in 1983, this commission has been a forum for the discussion of many concerns facing our two cities. From its earliest days, it has brought together parents, youth, workers of many kinds, from labor to middle management to small business people, and representing both the profit and non-profit spheres, including the religious community. These volunteers, joining with a number of liaisons from City departments, government, and agencies have worked together to lift up issues and, in many cases, pass on matters to other groups for action and, in other cases, being able to implement something ourselves.  Working with SWOCC, we have now, for a number of years, sponsored our own TV show.  This show has brought to the community speakers on many topics from healthy appetites, to mental health concerns, and on and on. 

Some of the notable and ongoing projects of the Commission are the annual Volunteer awards presentations including the George F. Romney award. We have sponsored turn off the TV night each year, and also worked on the “take your child to vote” activity. Some of our highlights have been a TV program on Teen Depression, still seen on SWOCC, another program still available on the religious and ethnic diversity in our community, and the pride we take in knowing that our children are well cared for through the summer and the after school programs offered by the Special Services Division of Farmington Hills.

At this time, we are most interested in what the community thinks we need to be involved in. We will, this fall, hold a Commission Retreat to revisit our history, visit our vision and check in with where we are and where we might need to be going. Members of the community are not only invited to think of joining the Commission as a member but passing along ideas to us. You can send these ideas to me, Paul Melrose, Commission Vice Chair, through pjmelrose@aol.com.