Sign up soon for the Oakwood Taylor Teen Health Center's free 17th annual Summer Arts & Prevention Academy

The Oakwood Taylor Teen Health Center is holding its 17th annual Taylor Summer Arts & Prevention Academy June 25 through Aug. 1 at The Sixth Grade Academy.

This is a program for students entering the sixth through the ninth grades in the fall, and focuses on art, dance, music, drama -- and plenty of fun. And it's free for Taylor residents!

Breakfast, lunch and transportation will be provided for residents of the city. The program runs between 9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, with an end of summer "showcase" held for family and friends at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 2 at Truman High School.

According to Mallory Pitoniak of the Taylor Teen Health Center, the program is a rewarding experience.

"Last year, we took a field trip to a dance studio to practice our showcase performance," she said. "The showcase is a special night at the end of our six-week program, where we invite family and friends of the participants to see the kids show off what they have learned throughout the summer."

The past several years, The Sixth Grade Academy has hosted the program. Each year, the group does a special major art project, as well as smaller art projects. In 2010, they painted a mural on the wall across from the school library.

William Home Jr., 10, a participant in last year's program, and Melissa Stellini, an assistant prevention counselor for the fifth and sixth grade groups, mentioned the importance of the lessons learned in the summer program as part of a story published in an internal publication at Oakwood, "Oakwood specializes in positive opportunities."

"I was mixing and making new colors for a drawing and they weren't coming out right," Home said. "So I just drew something else over them."

"It was an excellent example of making a mistake and not giving up," said Stellini of Home's decision. "That's our theme -- building character."

About 60 children between 10 and 15 participated in the program last year.

"It provides an environment for kids to come to during the summer and do things they wouldn't normally get to do," said Jamie Balavitch, lead prevention counselor at the teen center. "It's a safe and expressive environment to exposes them to the things that they might not ever be exposed to."

The program was honored by the Michigan Hospital Association Foundation when it was selected the 2005 Ludwig Community Benefit Award winner. 

The award is a tribute to the legacy of leadership and community partnership demonstrated by Patric E. Ludwig, former MHA president and Bronson Healthcare Group president, and is presented to the member organizations that have aided their communities through healthcare, economic or social initiatives. For more about the Ludwig award, click here.

Over the years, the summer program also has been recognized as a vital community resource by state legislation, city leaders and local service organizations.

For more information and applications to the summer program, call the Oakwood Taylor Teen Health Center at (734) 287-2076 Ext. 229 or 242. The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Friday, June 14.