The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)

Youth service

- Annie Lane Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@creators.com.

DEAR ANNIE >> Young people are ready, willing and able to tackle the world’s most difficult challenges, yet they are vastly underrepre­sented as active citizens, decision-makers and leaders. From the preschoole­rs in Arizona collecting canned goods to combat hunger to the high schooler in Virginia creating STEM clubs for women and girls to the middle schooler in Alabama saving the state’s monarch butterfly population, all of these remarkable youths have a common goal: to raise awareness and solve the problems facing the world today. Today’s social and environmen­tal problems are immense; we need young people to create solutions to realworld problems now.

Please let your readers know about Global Youth Service Day, which occurs from April 21 to April 23 this year. During this three-day event, thousands of community partners in the United States and 125 countries will activate millions of young people to strengthen their communitie­s. Global Youth Service Day recognizes the solutions that young people are bringing to the world’s most pressing issues 365 days a year. When given the opportunit­y, young people are great assets and resources to their communitie­s, providing unique perspectiv­es and skills. Youths who are engaged as active community members are likelier to grow up to volunteer, vote and donate to charitable causes. Research shows that when youths engage in quality service and service learning projects, they strengthen their leadership skills, increase their academic engagement and develop vital career and workforce readiness skills. These outstandin­g youths demonstrat­e that young people are leaders and problem-solvers today, not just the leaders of a distant tomorrow.

For more informatio­n, readers can visit http://www.ysa.org/gysd. You can also find us on social media — @YouthServi­ce on Twitter and at https://www.facebook.com/ youthservi­ceamerica. — Steven A. Culbertson, president and CEO of Youth Service America DEAR STEVEN >> I couldn’t agree more. When young people are given the opportunit­y to help their communitie­s thrive, they thrive, too. I encourage all my young readers to celebrate Global Youth Service Day this weekend and find ways to keep shining all year long. DEAR ANNIE >> This is regarding “Charged-Up Spouse,” the aggravated man whose wife is constantly using and misplacing his phone chargers, resulting in ongoing and frustratin­g searches. I have, I think, the definitive solution: He should look into a “key-finding” device. There are many inexpensiv­e paging/tracking devices available today.

The receiver is typically attached to your key ring and emits a loud beep whenever the transmitte­r is activated. Though these are often marketed for finding keys, they can be used for any item. In this case, the receiver would simply be affixed to the phone charger instead of to his car keys. And unlike the colored tape option, this solution would not require that the missing charger be within his actual line of sight. I’ve used these devices myself, and I have found them consistent­ly effective and reliable. — Mike K. DEAR MIKE >> A modern solution for a modern problem. I like it.

When young people are given the opportunit­y to help their communitie­s thrive, they thrive, too.

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