A
SSOCIATED
N
EWSPAPERS OF
M
ICHIGAN
P
AGE
3
September 3, 2015
I
NKSTER
- W
AYNE
- W
ESTLAND
Youth employment program serves 26 students
Program leader honored
Clothing giveaway planned
WayneMemorial High School
Junior Reserve Officer Training
Corps (JROTC) instructor Steven
LaHaine has been honoredwith
the Gold Instructor Award and
the Senior Army Instructor of
theYear Award.
The awards were announced
last week and La Haine was rec-
ognized as a “role model for all
other JROTC instructors across
the nation.”
He was selected as the
Brigade Senior Army Instructor
of the Year for 2014-15 for his
professionalism, technical profi-
ciency, dedication to duty and
service to the students at Wayne
Memorial High School. La
Haine also is a leader for all
JROTC instructors in the 7th
Brigade.
Steven La Haine
Middlebelt Baptist Church in
Inkster is planning another
clothing giveaway event from 9
a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturday,
Sept. 12.
The church will have clean,
gently-used items of clothing for
men, women and children that
will be given away at no cost.
The event is open to the public.
This month, a spokesperson
said, the church will also have
some household items that will
also be available for those
attending the giveaway event.
The clothing is donated by
church members and collected
from other benefactors, washed
and mended in preparation for
the giveaway, which often draws
a large crowd.
The church is located at 943
Middlebelt Road in Inkster.
For more information about
the clothing giveaway, call (734)
728-3838.
A record number 26 Westland
teens participated in the 2015
Wild About Youth - Works!
Summer Employment Program,
the youth task force originated
byMayorWilliamWild.
The task force is a partner-
shipbetween the city, theWayne-
Westland Community School
District and Fifth Third Bank
that was designed as a means of
providing summer jobs for local
students between the ages of 16-
18.
This was the fifth year of the
programand themost successful
to date with the highest number
of student participants the pro-
gram has ever seen, Wild said.
Since its inception in 2011, The
Wild About Youth - Works!
Program has helped to provide
summer employment for 125 stu-
dents. As part of the program,
local students were provided
valuable learning experiences
by participating in various pro-
gram events such as the Dress
for Success, Career Fair,
Financial Literacy Training and,
new this year, was an added dis-
cussion on the importance of
having a professional social
media presence. Students were
challenged with setting personal
financial goals, learning the
importance of a strong work
ethic and the importance of good
customer service skills, Wild
noted in a prepared statement.
“I am very proud to be part of
this wonderful program each
and every year. I am amazed
when I run into past participants
in the community and they tell
me about the car they purchased
after working in the program
and learning to save their dol-
lars, or when they tell me they
are still employed with the same
employer and have learned so
much and have a path to follow
for their career. I truly believe
that the partnership with Mayor
Wild and the City of Westland is
Modeling the way for neighbor-
ing communities to develop sim-
ilar programs and provide simi-
lar opportunities to youth within
those communities,” said James
Allen, manager at Fifth Third
Bank.
“I amhonored to partner with
a mayor that is as dedicated to
the youth in his city as Mayor
Wild. It is his commitment to the
youth of today that strengthens
the business community in
Westland well into the future,”
he added.
The 2015 year also saw more
businesses participating than
ever before. This program
allows the business community
to hire and train young adults
who are entering the workforce.
Local businesses agreed to pro-
vide students a summer job for
at least 16 hours per week and
earn at leastminimumwage.
“We decided to participate in
this program again after having
success last year,” said Jamie
Bell, owner and general manag-
er of Culver's. “You can really
see the difference between
applicants who have completed
the Wild About Youth! - Works
programand those who have not
participated. They come in for
interviews organized, well pre-
pared and present themselves in
a professionalmanner.”
“The skills that these youth
are gaining through this pro-
gram will stay with them for a
lifetime,” said Wild. “These
individuals are the future of our
city and this program proved,
once again, to be successful in
preparing them for the work
force.”
Wild and his administration
hosted a ceremony to congratu-
late the students who completed
the program and recognize the
businesses for their participa-
tion. One lucky participant, Josh
Thompson, 17, walked awaywith
an iPad, donated by Fifth Third
Bank.
“I enjoyed the Wild About
Youth program thoroughly when
I was enrolled in it. Not only did
it leave me with experience in
the workplace that I will contin-
ue to use for the rest of my life,
but it also helped me line up my
second job,” Thompson said. “I
would highly recommend the
Wild About Youth program to
anyone looking into it.”
Wild said the goal for next
year is 50 student participants in
the program.
Mayor William R. Wild presents Madison Kernodle with her certificate
of completion of the 2015 Wild About Youth! - Works program.
