Brooklyn Youth Embark on a Journey for Change

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Dell_Red_logo2 30 young men and women and their college-age mentors from the underserved Bushwick community in Brooklyn, New York are being given the chance of a lifetime to broaden their view of the world and perform invaluable work for a great cause at the same time. The project, called "Journey for Change," a collaboration between AngelRock, The Salvation Army Bushwick Community Center, The Salvation Army Southern African Territory, HOPE Worldwide, and HOPE Worldwide South Africa, will take them halfway across the world to South Africa for two weeks. Once they arrive in South Africa, these young people, aged between 12-15 years old, will volunteer in poverty-stricken areas, work at AIDS orphanages, attend team-building and self esteem workshops and learn about South African culture. Each child will also be connected to an African pen pal of the same age and gender so that the exchange of ideas and cultures can continue long after they return home. Dell is providing each participant an XPS M1330 (PRODUCT) RED laptops so that they can share their experiences with the world as they blog about everything they are learning and doing, as well as 2 XPS ONE (PRODUCT) RED desktops for the Johannesburg orphan locations and 16 desktops for the children’s center in Bushwick.

Once they return home, they will carry on their work to educate the world about their work on behalf of ending AIDS in Africa. Their transformation from local at-risk kids to worldly community leaders will be complete as they are given the esteemed designation of Journey for Change Global Ambassadors. As Global Ambassadors, they will share their experiences with the help of such news outlets as Time for Kids, CNN iReport and Chat the Planet. They will also be planning and executing a fundraising project for a cause of their choice and speaking at local NYC schools about the wisdom they gained learned through the course of their journey. The coalition, in conjunction with Time for Kids Magazine, will parlay this experience into a broader curriculum which is aimed to bring their experiences to American schoolchildren. Time for Kids, with a circulation of 4 million schoolchildren, will feature this as their September cover story. CNN will also be doing their bit by developing a documentary, hosted by Soledad O'Brien, which will film the South Africa trip and follow the kids once they return. The documentary will air on CNN and CNN International in December.

Dell is proud to partner with (PRODUCT) RED.  Purchase any (PRODUCT) RED item and part of the proceeds will go to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.

Dell also provides employee education about HIV prevention, supports HIV services organizations in the communities we call home and is a member of the Global Business Coalition on HIV. Dell salutes these future leaders for joining in the fight, and is proud of the role they are playing to meet the specter of the global AIDS epidemic head on.

About the Author: Todd D

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