ANSONIA — Ansonia has a new youth center after more than 10 years without one.
The ‘Valley Save Our Youth’ organization held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday (Jun 25) at its new teen center at 4 Fourth St.
About 30 people gathered in the heat to hear from the center’s founder and executive director, Leonard Duffus, and a collection of elected and local officials.
Valley Save Our Youth (VSOY) is an Ansonia-based non-profit focused on setting kids up for success through recreational activities, educational resources, and leadership training.
It began ten years ago when Duffus and friends handed out back to school supplies to teens in need. Now, they have a home base and state funding to grow the mission.
VSOY occupies a building formerly occupied by a non-profit called Ansonia Community Action (ACA). Many of the adults who sit on the VSOY board attended ACA when they were teens.
“This community hasn’t had anything like this, ever. We are unique in our purpose,” said Duffus.
The center is filled with couches and beanbag chairs and boasts a video game area, a TV watching area, a pool table, kitchen, computer lab, and, most importantly, a mural that spans an entire wall, with Trayvon Martin’s face at the center.
The Valley Save Our Youth project was inspired by Trayvon Martin’s tragic death. David Morgan, the CEO of Team Inc., a non-profit aimed at strengthening communities, spoke at the ribbon-cutting ceremony about the inspiration. He said, “we must do better. Demographics cannot be destiny.”
Building a supportive community for Ansonia’s teens was the theme of the morning. State Sen. Jorge Cabrera spoke to crowd.
“This is what happens when elected officials work together. My dream, my hope is to grab more kids so they don’t fall through the cracks.” Cabrera helped facilitate the $150,000 (state Rep. Kara Rochelle reached out Monday and said the amount is $220,000) state grant that will fund VSOY for the next two years. Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro sent remarks, saying, “this is an extraordinary community achievement.”
The crowd happily moved inside to the air-conditioning after Duffus cut the ribbon and teens launched blue powder and confetti sticks into the air.
The mural isn’t just visually striking: it sends a message.
The mural clearly states: “Bigger than your Block.” This phrase urges teens to remember that their world is bigger than Ansonia. Also, Bigger than your Block is the name of the youth organization associated with VSOY, which teens will be encouraged to sign up for when they use the teen center. Once signed up, they will have the opportunity to meet with a counselor twice per week and go on trips to Washington DC, zip-lining, Six Flags, and more.
The teens were excited that the center is finally open. Donned in matching VSOY shirts, they enjoyed the refreshments and video games.
Jeremiah Bads said, “I’ll probably come here twice per week. I live just up the street. I’ll have a lot of fun here.”
Teen Justin Arcentales said, “we built most of this. We painted the lab, built the desk and chairs, and came up with ideas. The center will give more openings to help people.” He plans on coming to the center to chill.
Teen Alana Morell helps out at the center for community service hours for school, but also likes being around kids her age.
Cheryl McCollum runs the Ansonia Salvation Army. She sits on the board of VSOY.
“I was raised by a village. I know it takes one,” she said. “I lost my parents young, and if I didn’t have my siblings or the adults around me, I would have been askew. I have heart for kids who struggle. I felt alone for a long time, but the adults who were around helped me.”
VSOY’s self-proclaimed mother-figure is Sonya Williams. Retired after 27 years of working for the Department of Children and Families, she was looking for something new to do.
This summer, she’ll sit at the front desk, welcoming teens inside. She smiled as she looked around the room.
“I’ll try not to grandmother them too much,” she said.
Williams attended the ACA program as a kid, and then worked in the building when it was a community center. “It’s a full circle. I’m back to my roots,” she said. “I’m happy the kids have somewhere to go. The streets are getting so bad. They’ll have somewhere where the doors close, with no-tolerance to bullies, somewhere safe.”
The center will open for teens to drop in starting Monday. It will be open weekdays from 3:00 p.m. to 8 p.m. until August 20. It is free, but donations are encouraged. To enroll your child, visit www.saveouryouth.org/join
Cherish Miller at the new teen center on Fourth Street in Ansonia.
