All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.
Appalachian Impact has recently grown its program offerings after the COVID-19 pandemic reduced its ability to mentor students.
Kelsey Luterek with Appalachian Impact, a nonprofit organization that mentors local youth, attended the July 15 Rotary Club of Buckhanon-Upshur meeting to detail Appalachian Impact’s various programs and how they reach out to youth in the community.
“Appalachian Impact was founded in 2013 by Justin Bowers, and previous to COVID, they were strictly pretty much a mentor-based program,” Luterek said. “They focused on at-risk youth in the community, so it would be referral-based. A counselor, an administrator, or a teacher would contact Appalachian Impact, and they would say, ‘Hey, we have a student that could use a big brother or big sister.’”
This system continued until COVID shut down the schools.
“When the school shut down, we had to branch out into different directions and at the time, I think everyone was dumbfounded as to what to do,” Luterek said. “I think it was a godsend, because we have branched out since then into so many different programs.”
The nonprofit’s annual fundraising gala amassed $20,000, and $7,000 of that money went toward scholarships for high school seniors.
“The thing that makes our scholarships different is we lowered the GPA requirement,” Luterek explained. “In order to really focus on those at-risk, youth in Upshur County, we aren’t looking at academic success; we’re looking at stories of hope in these kids. A kid whose parents don’t have a lot of money has been through a hard time, and now they want to go to college, and they want to be an engineer. That’s the kind of story we’re looking for.”
Appalachian Impact also collaborated with West Virginia Wesleyan College to create an after-school program.
“Coordinator Julie McCourt did an entire year of after-school coordination for these kids,” Luterek said. “She worked with the teachers, found their weak spots, mentored and tutored the kids, and also took them on experiences they might not have had otherwise. They got to go to the Wesleyan pool, they got to go to the art department, and the mural in the Parish House was done in part by our after-school kids.”
All the programs offered by Appalachian Impact are offered at low to no cost to youth.
“We worked with businesses in the community to find things for kids to do all summer,” she said. “These are all low-cost or no-cost to kids in the community to try to focus on families that need a little support but don’t have the funds for it. One week we have a craft, the next week we have a snack; there is always something engaging and educational for the kids.”
Appalachian Impact is also preparing for their vendor show in September.
“We are looking for partners who want to join or help the vendor show, and we already have 12 youths that signed up, which is insane, as we’ve only been advertising for two weeks, so these kids pay $20 admission fee that they will get back the day of the show to use as change,” Luterek said. “These kids are coming up with business plans, marketing strategies, advertisements, they’re creating products and then they get to come to Pretty Peonies Parlor in Buckhannon, which is one of our partners. They set up a table, they do a show, they sell their project, they learn math, they learn communication skills, and this is all funded and put together by us.”
More information about Appalachian Impact can be found on their Facebook page.
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