Olneyville Neighborhood News - Olneyville Housing Corporation

66 Chaffee Street
Providence, RI 02909
phone: 401-351-8719
fax: 401-351-0019
email: [email protected]
web: www.olneyville.org
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Olneyville Neighborhood News
A Publication of the
November 2013 Volume 9, Issue 4
D’Abate Students Learn About Their Neighborhood
Through Oral History Project
Olneyville Neighborhood News / Noticias de Olneyville
November 2013 Volume 9, Issue 4
Olneyville Fall Festival 2013
Photos by Ryan T. Conaty
Member Organizations of the Olneyville Collaborative / Miembros de la Colaborativa
A Sweet Creation Youth Organization, Boys & Girls Clubs of Providence, Building Futures, Cathedral of Life Christian Assembly,
Childhood Lead Action Project, Children’s Friend, Clinica Esperanza/Hope Clinic, Dirt Palace, District 5 Police, English for Action, Environmental Justice League of RI, Fete Music, Habitat for Humanity of Rhode Island, Institute for the Study & Practice of
Nonviolence, Joslin Community Development Corporation, Joslin Recreation Center, Rhode Island LISC, Manton Avenue Project,
Meeting Street, Nickerson House Community Center, Olneyville Community Library, Olneyville Health Center, Olneyville Housing
Corporation, Olneyville Merchant Association, Olneyville Neighborhood Association, Providence After School Alliance, Providence
Housing Authority, Recycle-A-Bike, Social Venture Partners RI / Social Enterprise RI, Swearer Center / D’Abate Community School,
The Steel Yard, United Way of Rhode Island, William D’Abate Elementary School, Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council,
YMCA of Greater Providence, YouthBuild Providence
Olneyville Neighborhood News is published four times a year by the Olneyville Collaborative. It is distributed for free to homes,
businesses and other agencies in the Olneyville neighborhood. Its production is made possible by Olneyville Housing
Corporation, Rhode Island Department of Health, Our Neighborhoods, and by its advertisers. Submissions are welcome and
should be sent to Johanna Walczak at [email protected].
the second lesson they went over their homework and also
During the summer, Vera Carothers and Carolina Buitrago
created a timeline of Olneyville, which highlighted some
worked on an oral history project as part of an internship
with Olneyville Housing Corporation, which will be exhibited of the most important events. Each student got a package
of nine pictures and they had to match them with the
in 2014 as part of their 25th Anniversary Celebration.
description of the event and organize
As a component of their project,
them in chronological order. The
they completed a photography
program ended with a walking tour of
activity with students attending the
the neighborhood during which the
Brown University Swearer Center’s
students photographed Olneyville
summer program at William D’Abate
through their eyes. The students were
Elementary School. They partnered
told to pretend they were showing
with a classroom of rising 4th graders
another student in another part of the
to incorporate arts and history
world what Olneyville was and they
education into the project. Vera
had to do it through pictures. Each
and Carolina taught three lessons
student had a disposable camera and
during their summer classes about
was able to take 24 pictures.
Olneyville’s history, as well as oral
From left to right: Yvemine Althenor, Naydine
history and photography methods.
The photos are meant to give voice to
Gomez, Alexis Chartier, Emily Brown, Khia
The first lesson involved explaining
each student as a witness of history,
Dollison, Gilianis Frias, Davanna Jackley,
what oral history was and how to
and explore how each child tells a
John Cordon, Hollis Warner
document history. For homework
different story of their surroundings.
they had to interview somebody at
The kids had lots of fun walking around and being able to
home and ask them questions about the history of their
capture what was meaningful to them.
houses, their experiences moving into the neighborhood,
-By Vera Carothers
or whatever they could remember about Olneyville. During
Youth Leadership Academy Prepares the Next
Generation of Community Builders
This summer Olneyville Housing provided 12 youth from
organizations in the neighborhood. All twelve youth enrolled
the neighborhood with a fun and
in the program successfully completed
educational leadership experience
their hours, and graduated from the
through the second annual Youth
Academy on August 2, 2013.
Leadership Academy, funded by
Korrie Hooks is one of the youth
Rhode Island Housing’s Youth Rap
who participated in the program,
program. During the four week long
completing her internship at the
program, participants attended
Swearer Center’s Summer Program
youth leadership classes taught by
at the William D’Abate Elementary
Roberto Gonzalez for 4 hours every
School. She is 14 years old, lives on
Monday, and then reported to job
Aleppo Street and entered the 9th
placement sites for the rest of the
grade this fall. We asked Korrie a
week where they gained internship
series of questions about the program
experience at partner organizations
and here’s what she had to say:
YLA Class of 2013 with Roberto Gonzalez
in the neighborhood for 8 hours a week.
and Councilwoman Matos
In their youth leadership classes they
learned how to become better leaders in their community
Nitza and Gennessy: What did you learn by doing this
and build relationships, while learning more about the
program?
services and programs provided by community based
Continued on page 3...
2
Olneyville Neighborhood News A publication of the Olneyville Collaborative
Biking Along the Woonasquatucket
Campers learning new skills (photo by Lesley Lambert)
This summer the Woonasquatucket River Watershed
Council’s Red Shed Bike Shop ran a weekly bike camp
in Riverside Park for youth ages 6-18 years old. Every
week a new group of students learned the basics of
bicycle maintenance and repair and how to safely ride a
bike on streets and on a path. Campers also got lessons
in environmental science, learning about the history
and ecology of the river, and how our actions – such as
littering – impact the health of the river. However, what
bike camp participants enjoyed most were the daily rides
on the Woonasquatucket River Greenway Bikepath. They
rode almost 5 miles on the path every day to a waterfall in
Johnston, getting to experience the natural beauty of the
watershed along the way.
Here are the results from our first year of Red Shed
Bike Camp in 2013. As a result of our 6 week bike camp
program:
-73 youth participated in camp (67 6 – 13 year olds and 6
14 – 18 year old interns)
-7 youth learned to ride a bike for the first time
-77 bikes were refurbished and given out to campers along
with helmets and locks
-An average of 20 youth riders joined our daily group rides
New Bike Path Spurs Opening: The Fred Lippitt
Woonasquatucket River Greenway and bike path will have
some new spurs open for public enjoyment starting this
fall. Look for a beautiful spur that starts at Donigian Park,
crosses the river next to the Rising Sun Mills dam and joins
with Delaine Street near the bridge that crosses the river. There is also a spur through the Lincoln Lace and Braid
site that is chock full of wildlife and unspoiled habitat that
starts at Merino Park and exits onto Glenbridge Avenue
and joins the spur that connects to the main bike path at
Buttonwoods Golf Course. Get on your bike and ride this
fall! For a map of the bike path and the new spurs go to:
http://wrwc.org/gwyMap.php
Fish Found in Olneyville!
The Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, along
with several partners, has just begun an urban fish
community
monitoring
program. The
purpose of the
program is to
collect data that
compares fish
in more pristine
upstream
locations
to those in
Fish monitors collecting data (photo by EcoRI)
urbanized
downstream locations. It will monitor fish populations on
an annual basis to help determine if the overall water and
habitat quality is improving. By looking at the health of the
fish population, it will be easier to understand if the health
and environmental quality of the river is getting better. Fish
we found included American Eels (some as large as 3 feet
long!), bluegill, fall fish, golden shiners, white suckers and
even a flounder called a hogchoker and a blue crab. If
you would like to volunteer for this program contact Alicia
Lehrer at 401-861-9046 or [email protected].
-By Alicia Lehrer
November
... Youth Leadership continued from pg. 1
Korrie: I learned how to interact with people, get out my
comfort zone, to take the lead even when no one else is,
have the confidence to talk to people and be professional
while on a job.
N+G: What was hard for you that you got better at?
K: Speaking out and taking the lead – that was the hardest
for me, but it got easier after a while.
N+G: Was your job what you expected it to be?
K: I liked the job, going and interacting with the kids. I
expected it to be boring but it was a fun experience to
have.
N+G: What would your advice be to next year’s
participants?
K: My advice would be to speak up and not hold back your
opinions on things and to communicate with everyone.
Ribs, Chicken,
Beef, Pork, Soups,
Sandwiches,
Salads, and
much more!

 
18 Plainfield St.,Providence
Tel 401-621-9500
3
In other exciting news, Joslin Park was the recipient
The Kid’s Gardening Workshops at the Community
of a generous tree endowment from the Providence
Garden in Joslin Park just wrapped up a fun season of
Neighborhood Planting Program! With the help of
learning! This summer, we planted a brand-new Kid’s
volunteers, on Saturday October 26th we planted a
Plot and held weekly workshops in the garden to engage
small fruit tree orchard next to the
kids in the neighborhood. We
Community Garden, three new
grew carrots, pumpkins, tomatoes,
fruit trees in the D’Abate School
sunflowers, walking onions, and
Garden, and several shade trees
everyone’s favorite, sorrel (aka
on Florence and Kossuth Street.
the sour plant!). We ate lots of
Big thanks to the Providence
wonderful vegetables and fruits,
Neighborhood Planting Program
and tasted many strange and
and the City Forester, Doug Still!
flavorful plants and flowers. We
learned about land preparation
for planting, transplanting, and
If you are interested in learning
seed saving. We saved so many
more about opportunities to grow
flower seeds! Next year the flower
your own food in Olneyville,
gardens are going to be amazing,
contact Johanna Walczak,
as will all the yards and sidewalks
Olneyville Hub Leader for the
that the kids and their parents plant
Jana and Jasani with the sunflowers
Providence Community Growers
on their own! A big THANK YOU to all the
they helped grow
Network
at 401-351-8719 x109
kids who worked in the garden, and to
their parents, for encouraging them!
-by Roby Newton, Community Garden Leader
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

Volume 9, Issue 4
What’s Growing at Joslin Park
Put some
South in your
Mouth!

2013
38 Dike St.
421-9090
N+G: Do you think you will be a better leader in your
community after the program?
K: Yes because I was taught how to reach out to people
in the community, how to speak to people, and how to
carry myself in front of people in the community.
N+G: How will your jobsite help you in the future?
K: My jobsite will help me in the future with knowing
what I want to do when I grow up, interacting with people
more and how to handle situations when you’re at your
job.”
Like Korrie, the participants had an enjoyable summer
and thanks to programs like this they were able to stay
busy this summer and have fun.
-By Nitza Sanchez and Gennessy Ramirez
Eye Examinations & Quality Eyewear
American Eyeglass Center Inc.
Dr. Nancy J. Ragosta, OD
Elio Quaglieri, Optician
Most major carriers accepted
including Neighborhood Health Plan
( 401 ) 521 . 0102
1500 Atwood Ave #9, Johnston, RI
FREEWAY CAR WASH
“The first and still
the best full-service
car wash in
Rhode Island”
1880 Westminster St., Providence
621-7654