Team F.R.E.S.H. (Fall River Extends Supportive Hands), in collaboration with the Healthy Youth Task Force, announced the five winners of the Red Wagon competition on December 5, 2007. The competition was designed to promote civic engagement through community service projects that fulfill  America's Promise. Nineteen projects were submitted to the youth leadership group during November and included neighborhood clean-ups, hoop tournaments, and intergenerational activities. "The groups really did make a difference," noted Youth Services Director Christian McCloskey. "What was most impressive was the number of youth involved who gave back to their community," he added. The Healthy Youth Task Force, designed to advocate for youth issues in the Greater Fall River Area, meets monthly to share ideas and collaborate on projects. Team F.R.E.S.H. is the Task Force's youth leadership group that promotes America's Promise. Click here for photos of Team F.R.E.S.H. appearing before the City Council in June, 2007. For more information, contact Christian McCloskey at 508-324-2419.
 

(Top row, left) Fall River Youth Services Coordinator Christian McCloskey gives final instructions to F.R.E.S.H. team members Linda Rim, Lillian Phuong, Isaiah Darby, and Casey Taylor before the award ceremony begins. (Top row, center and right) Healthy Youth Task Force co-chairs Jamison Souza and Christian McCloskey welcome people to the award ceremony at the Municipal Veterans Memorial on Bank Street. (Middle row, left) Community Development Recreation Director Grace Gerling accepts a Red Wagon award for their annual Halloween party for the youth of the City. (Middle row, center) Holly Halstead of BCC Rotaract, Deb Cavanaugh of Family Service Association, Mimi Laravee of the Boys and Girls Club, Ja'von Pemberton of Clean Water for the World, Grace Gerling of CD-REC, Dawn Farina of Morton Middle School, and Omama Marzuq of BCC Rotaract in the wagon, pose for a photo. (Middle row, right) Family Service Association After-school Program Manager Deb Cavanagh accepts her award for Lights On After School, a program in which the parents were invited to spend time in their childcare facilities. (Bottom row, left) Ja'von Pemberton of the Boys' and Girls' Club accepts his award from Isaiah Darby on behalf of the teen volunteers who organized and ran a Halloween party for hundreds of Fall River youth. . (Bottom row, center) Omama Marzuq and Holly Halstead accept their award from Linda Rim for a number of community services projects by Bristol Community College students. (Bottom row, right) Boys and Girls Club Executive Director Peter McCarthy comments on the importance of youth volunteerism as exemplified by the Red Wagon competition.