NWTC Service-Learning and Civic Engagement 2018-2019 | Page 34

CHILDREN/YOUTH
CONNECTING FAMILIES
Free community
& safety fair with
bonus bunny flair.
Hundreds of people attended the annual
Connecting Families Community & Safety
Fair on Saturday, March 10 at NWTC. The
event, held in collaboration with the Oneida
Higher Crime Prevention and Oneida
Police Department, has grown in size and
numbers over the years however the spirit
of community has remained strong.
The event is completely free to the
community and features free breakfast,
spring photos with the bunny, child
safety activities, raffles, and much
more. It serves as just one example
of the charter relationship between
NWTC and the Oneida Nation.
All of this could not have taken place
without a lot of coordination efforts
and student volunteers. On-site were
Early Childhood Education students
facilitating developmental
screenings for children ages birth
through kindergarten. Dental
program students were
handing out goodies bags
with free toothbrushes
and giving demonstrations
on children’s oral health.
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For parents who needed a bit of relaxation,
Therapeutic Massage students were
available in an “oasis” area to provide chair
massages, while other students shared
and showcased robotics. Criminal Justice
students were on-site to serve a flapjack
breakfast and the NWTC Mobile Labs were
showcasing the latest tech near police cars,
a bearcat and fire truck open for tours.
Skyler Lund, an NWTC Nursing student was
on site for the event volunteering as a face
painter. She shared, “I would definitely do
it again. It was so gratifying after seeing
how happy my creations made the kids.”
She continued, “I was able to use some
of the things I have learned in school and
apply them to this event, I’m sure it was a
day that the families won’t ever forget!”
As the relationship between NWTC and
the Oneida Nation continues to develop,
both will certainly reap the benefits.
Oneida Nation High School Principal
Artley Skenandore explained, “It’s a
relationship that we need to continue to
cultivate not only because of the academic
resources available to us but the huge
value-added workforce development …
for our individual tribal members.”