Are you interested in finding out what it's like to be a Pittsburgh police officer? Do you ever wonder how Pittsburgh’s firefighters train for emergencies, or how the City takes care of its parks and streets?
The Mayor's Youth Civic Leadership Academy is your chance to explore these things, and more! Apply now for the free, 6-session program!
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl today announced the 24 recipients who will receive funding through the fourth round of his servePGH initiative's "Love Your Block” grant program – bringing the total number of projects to 64. From Garfield to Elliott, and Beltzhoover to Spring Garden, resident volunteers will partner with the City to transform blighted lots into community assets. Learn more here!
Congratulations to the Greater Pittsburgh Chapter of Autism Speaks for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Their outstanding efforts to serve those affected by Autism here in the Pittsburgh region have truly impacted local residents and communities and we thank them for their service!
On April 9th, 2013, over 800 bipartisan mayors across the country took the time to recognize the impact of national service in their cities and thank those who serve. Currently, there are more than 1,600 AmeriCorps members and Senior Corps volunteers that serve in the City of Pittsburgh, providing vital support to residents and improving quality of life. To read more about the impact of their service here in Pittsburgh, Click Here.
On Wednesday, March 20th, Mayor Ravenstahl and his servePGH team were joined by volunteers and community members to celebrate the 2nd Anniversary of the servePGH Initiative! Volunteers spent the morning in Elliott helping to prepare a garden for spring planting.
Check out our most recent newsletter to learn more about all the great news from servePGH!
Congratulations to Keep It Real, a student organization at the University of Pittsburgh, for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Keep It Real's persistent diligence has provided Pittsburgh's Somali refugee community with a mentoring and educational support program that enables youth to greater success in their educational journeys.
Congratulations to the president and staff of Allegheny Window Cleaning, Inc. for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Their outstanding efforts to serve the young patients of Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh have inspired others across Pittsburgh and the nation to lift the spirits of children and spread joy through creative window washing!
Congratulations to Andrea Williams, Executive Director of the Children's Sickle Cell Foundation, Inc for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Her commitment to serving our residents and families facing the challenges associated with sickle cell disease, and her dedication to providing them an invaluable support network and quality programs, is truly commendable.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Cool Roofs program will engage volunteers to equip Pittsburgh with more sustainable and energy efficient buildings. Volunteers will coat rooftops with a white reflective coating, resulting in a reduction of internal building temperatures of up to 30 percent and a reduction of CO2e emissions by almost 50 tons. Partially funded by a $100,000 Cities of Service Impact Volunteering Fund grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies to the Mayor’s servePGH initiative; over $55,000 will be dedicated to painting the roofs of 10 City-owned buildings in 2013.
Volunteer recruitment will begin soon, to hold the first roof painting in April. Volunteers will work closely with the Mayor's Office of Sustainability and Energy Efficieny and the City’s Department of Public Works personnel to safely coat City rooftops with white reflective paint. Look out for more updates, coming soon!
The Mayor's newest servePGH mentoring initiative - Promise Coaches - launched this week! Promise Coaches equips adults with the skills needed to mentor students through high school and onto college, while increasing the number of students eligible for The Pittsburgh Promise.
To find out how YOU can make a difference in the life of a young person visit: pittsburghpa.gov/servepgh/promisecoaches
Today Mayor Ravenstahl announced that applications are now available for his spring 2013 Edible Gardens program, an expansion of his successful Green Up Pittsburgh program and servePGH initiativ
In 2012, Cities of Service engaged StoryCorps, an independent nonprofit dedicated to helping Americans preserve and share their stories, to help capture the experiences of Cities of Service.
Click here to listen to an audio montage featuring Mayor Ravenstahl and others speaking passionately about the power of service to impact our nation's most pressing challenges.
Congratulations to the Girl's Math and Science Partnerhsip for receiving Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! The Girl's Math and Science Partnership, apart of the STEM programming in the Carnegie Science Center, strives to provide young girls with the resources to succeed in the historically male dominated arenas of math and science. Thank you for choosing to mentor our young residents and provide quality programming to assist them in succeeding!
In celebration of National Mentoring Month, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl recognizes the efforts of volunteers who have chosen to dedicate time to mentor young people, ensuring they have the support he or she needs to navigate life’s challenges, in the City of Pittsburgh on Thank Your Mentor Day.
Mayor Ravenstahl's servePGH initiative was recently highlighted by Reimaging Service in an article by author and Cities of Service coalition consultant Shirley Sagawa. The article highlights Mayor Ravenstahl's successful Love Your Block program, which has transformed 200 vacant and blighted City blocks since 2011. Also mentioned is servePGH's use of AmeriCorps VISTA members to support servePGH programs. To read the full article click here. Reimagining Service is a national, multi-sector coalition dedicated to increasing social impact through effective volunteer engagement.
ServePGH is proud to be listed as number four in Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Top 10 Accomplishments of 2012! We would like to thank all of the servePGH volunteers who make our programs successful. ServePGH will launch three new initiatives in 2013, and has raised over $1 million of funding since its inception. To read the full article, and to see the Mayor's other top accomplishments, click here.
Congratulations to Beverly's Birthdays for receiving Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award. Beverly’s Birthdays utilizes volunteers to orchestrate monthly birthday parties for local children currently in shelters. We are proud to recognize an organization making a positive impact in the lives of Pittsburgh youth!
Congratulations to Mayor Ravenstahl's Fall 2012 Civic Leadership Academy Graduates for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Their interest in obtaining in-depth knowledge of the inner-workings of our City and their commitment to becoming more effective Pittsburgh residents is highly notable. In addition, they collaborated to coordinate a service project, raising approximately $ 1,000 for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.
Congratulations to Amizade Global Service-Learning on receiving Mayor Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award. Amizade is a Pittsburgh-based non-profit which works to provide volunteers with international service opportunities based on community-identified needs. Amizade encourages global friendship and understanding. We are proud to call them a part of the Pittsburgh community!
Congratulations to all of the Tree Tenders of Pittsburgh for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Their commitment to maintaining thousands of trees throughout the city and educating fellow residents on the benefits of trees help to make Pittsburgh a greener and healthier city! Thank you Tree Tenders!
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl put out a citywide call for Snow Angels and encouraged neighbors-in-need to apply for assistance. The Snow Angel program matches able-bodied volunteers with senior and physically disabled residents in their own neighborhood to remove snow from their sidewalks and walkways. To learn more information about the program or to volunteer as a Snow Angel please click here.
ServePGH is proud to announce that Community Alliance of Spring Garden-East Deutschtown was the group selected to win the Love Your Block Fall 2012 “best block revitalization project” and will receive an additional $2,000 Home Depot gift card for future block enhancements. The group revitalized vacant lots and buildings along Spring Garden Avenue in the neighborhood of Spring Garden and leveraged over $4,750 in donations for their project!
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced that applications are available for the spring 2013 Love Your Block grant award program. Local nonprofit organizations have until February 14, 2013 to apply. The block revitalization program gives up to 30 organizations $1,000 to purchase supplies and equipment necessary to implement a neighborhood block improvement project that mobilizes community volunteers. Click here for more information!
Congratulations to the Alumni Theater Company for receiving Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Civic Service Award. The Alumni Theater Company is dedicated to teaching performing arts to students in grades 6-12 in a highly creative and challenging enviornment.
Congratulations to Hannah Grace for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Hannah's unwavering commitment to Allegheny CleanWays' DumpBusters program has helped eliminate illegal dumping and helps make Pittsburgh a cleaner and healthier city. Thanks Hannah!
Congratulations to Reverend Brenda Gregg for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Reverend Brenda's unwavering dedication has provided Pittsburgh's inner-city youth and their families with quality programming and support networks that enable them to become effective leaders of their community.
Cities of Service announced today that the City of Pittsburgh is a recipient of the first round of Impact Volunteering Fund grants to 18 U.S. cities, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The $100,000 grant from the Cities of Service Impact Volunteering Fund will support Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's servePGH initiative, which engages volunteers to tackle Pittsburgh's greatest challenges.
The grant will fund two projects. The first, Cool Roofs, will coat 50,000 sq. ft. of rooftops to reduce city carbon emissions by 45 metric tons. The second project is an expansion to the Mayor's existing Green Up Pittsburgh program, and will fund the creation of community gardens to provide 2,000 pounds of produce to 200 low-income families.
Congratulations to the University of Pittsburgh student organization Plant to Plate on receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Plant to Plate volunteers teach sustainable urban farming techniques by guiding students in the planting, harvesting and preparation of their own organic produce.
Last harvest season, they donated over 140 pounds of organic, local produce to food banks and other non-profits. Plant to Plate is a wonderful resource for residents of Oakland and the entire City!
Students and teachers of Brashear's 9th Grade Promise Readiness Corps volunteered to clean and beautify Sheraden Park as part of a Love Your Block project! Despite a cold and rainy morning, students were eager to plant flowers, pick up litter, and paint a sign and poles around the park. They were joined by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl in the afternoon, who thanked the students for their great volunteering efforts that day. Check out photos here from the project and see all the great work that was done!
Congratulations to Doreen Tumminello on receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! Doreen has made outstanding efforts in fundraising for the Alzheimer's Association - Greater Pittsburgh Chapter. For the past five years, Doreen has served as captain of the BNY Mellon Team for the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s. Doreen is a great asset to our most livable City!
Cities of Service, a bipartisan coalition of mayors representing nearly 50 million Americans, highlighted the work of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Love Your Block initiative in their national newsletter. Check it out here!
Congratulations to Phyllis Jackson on receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! Phyllis organized a huge cleanup in the Upper Hill Neighborhood, collecting 800 pounds of litter and is also a participant in the Mayor’s Civic Leadership Academy. Phyllis is a great asset to her neighborhood and to our City!
Congratulations to Sandy Sweeney for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Thank you for your dedication to the St. Mary of the Mount Academy's Parent Teacher Group and Advisory Council.
The past several months have been great for servePGH! Click Here for our recent newsletter to learn more about these updates and other great news from servePGH.
Volunteers joined the Save Race Street Committee for a Love Your Block project to revitalize the corner lot at Race St. and Collier St.
Congratulations to Stef Sikora for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award. Stef served as the event coordinator, for the fifth year in a row, at the Zachary Shoemaker Dodgeball Tournament. This event has raised over $14,000 for her godson, Zack, who was traumatically injured in a car accident. Stef also volunteers with other charitable organizations, such as Make-A-Wish Foundation. She is a truly dedicated and inspiring individual!
Congratulations to Dreams of Hope for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Thank you for your dedication to providing an artistic outlet for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and allied youth in the City of Pittsburgh.
Congratulations to Mildred McGeary for receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! She has independently led regular litter and trash removal from her Perrysville neighborhood for over 40 years! Her dedication to a clean neighborhood and the City of Pittsburgh is admirable and inspirational.
Our Neighborhood Service Associate Ashton Armstrong recently sat down with her mother, a city forester, to share with StoryCorps their dedication to service and passion for Pittsburgh. Read more here!
Congratulations to Marlene Jackson, the latest recipient of the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! As president of the Dinwiddie Community Alliance, she helps beautify and improve the Greater Hill District neighborhood. Marlene also coordinates an annual National Night Out event, aimed to create a greater sense of community and a stronger bond between residents and police.
A win for students, a win for volunteers, and a win for our City. Thank you to The Coca-Cola Foundation for awarding the City, Mentoring Partnership of SWPA, and their partners $100,000 to help our students become "Promise Ready" by equipping them with volunteer "Promise Coaches." Get ready to get involved and mentor a young person this fall!
Congratulations to the Fishes and Loaves Cooperative Ministries for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Their dedication to serving the Hazelwood neighborhood has provided residents with access to a variety of nutritious foods and has promoted a culture of healthy eating in Pittsburgh.
Congratulations to Edna “Chico” Ficerai for receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! Through her work at CCAC’s Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success, she ensures that our country’s heroes can receive a top-notch education and advocates for policies that support student veterans.
Congratulations to The Union Project for receiving the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! Located in East Liberty, the organization offers community recreation and art classes, and serves as an event space for many of Pittsburgh's nonprofits. Thank you for creating a place for community members to connect and learn!
Congratulations to the 22 organizations who will receive funding through the third round of Love Your Block! These community groups and nonprofits will be given a $1,000 Home Depot gift card and the support of City services to transform vacant lots into community gardens, beautify veterans memorials, and engage youth in activities that promote healthy eating and volunteerism. A special $2,000 prize will be given to the organization that best revitalizes their block. Click here to find out which projects are happening in your neighborhood!
Congratulations to the Green Cities Conservation Corps for receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! As part of the Student Conservation Association, this group of young professionals volunteers full-time with organizations across Pittsburgh to build sustainability initiatives. Among their many accomplishments is providing educational programming for 600 youth and diverting more than 51,000 pounds of medical waste from landfills- that’s over 25 tons!
Mayor Ravenstahl's Civic Leadership Academy is a free, 10-week course designed to educate City residents about local government and civic engagement here in the City of Pittsburgh. Click here to apply for the Fall 2012 session. Session will be held each Wednesday evening from September 12th through November 14th.
Participants will get a behind the scenes look at City government with sessions that include tours, hands-on demonstrations, and fun activities to provide an up-close and personal view of how different City department helps to operate the City. Session topics include city organization and vision, budgeting processes, city planning and economic development, public works and park services, the protection of waters and rivers, public saftey efforts and more.
Applications are due by the end of the day, August 13, 2012.
Last month, StoryCorps sat down with Pittsburgh's own Chief Service Officer Rebecca Delphia and Orlando's CSO Marcia Hope Goodwin, to talk about their work with Cities of Service. Rebecca told the story of one Love Your Block grantee who sparred the transformation of a vacant lot into a community rain garden. Click here to read more and share with friends via Facebook and Twitter.
And stay tuned- StoryCorps, a national nonprofit devoted to preserving the stories of Americans, will soon be making its way to Pittsburgh to record conversations about the power of service and volunteerism in person!
Congratulations to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh for receiving the Mayor’s Citizen Service Award! The agency is dedicated to mentoring youth to help them attain success, and has recently been named Agency of the Year by their national umbrella organization - keep up the great work!
This summer’s Youth Civic Leadership Academy kicked off last night with high school students from across the City meeting with some of the City’s highest leadership- including Mayor Ravenstahl! Students were also challenged to cut $10 million from the City budget or increase revenue- a feat that was deemed nearly impossible by the class.
To learn more, visit pittsburghpa.gov/cla.
Congratulations to past and present Love Your Block grantees, as well as former Neighborhood Service Associate Christina Burke, for receiving July's Green Star award! Read about all of the great work Love Your Block grantees are doing across Pittsburgh here.
Congratulations to Harry and Joan Sell for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Over the past 10 years, the couple has collaborated with Volunteer Pilots Association to drive organ transplant patients from Allegheny County’s West Mifflin Airport to a number of City hospitals for surgery. Thank you, Harry and Joan, for being such a critical part of patients’ journeys towards health!
Congratulations to the 50 Mayor's Mentoring Initiative participants who received a Citizen Service Award from Mayor Ravenstahl. Each of these City employees dedicated time each week mentor a local middle school student during the 2011-2012 school year. The City couldn't be more proud of the impact they've made in the lives of Pittsburgh's youth!
Congratulations to Julie Peterson of the Central Northside Neighborhood Council for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Julie was instrumental in coordinating Tuesday’s KaBOOM! playground build in Allegheny Commons Park, helping to coordinate logistics and recruit volunteers.
Join Mayor Ravenstahl and 50 City employees in giving a local youth the greatest gift- your time. Through the Mayor's Mentoring Initiative, City employees are eligible to volunteer during the work week through one of two opportunities: the United Way's Be a 6th Grade Mentor program or Reading is Fundamental Pittsburgh's Everybody Wins! program.
City employees can apply now to mentor for the 2012-2013 school year! If you're not a City employee and are interested in mentoring, check out unitedwaypittsburgh.org or rifpittsburgh.org for more information.
Videos of the Class Representatives speaking at the Spring 2012 Civic Leadership Academy Graduation Ceremony are now available on our website here! Be sure to check them out and hear about the program from the graduates themselves! Also, the video of the entire Graduation Ceremony will be played on the City Cable channel on TV for the next few weeks at the following times - 3am, 8:30am, 12:30pm, 6:30pm, and 10:30pm.
Congratulations to Fred Brown for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Fred is the Associate Director of Program Development for the Kingsley Association in Larimer, where he’s working hard to improve the lives of youth in the neighborhood, as well as engage residents in hands-on, green development programming. Thanks, Fred, for your dedication to the Larimer community!
This past Saturday, graduates of the Spring 2012 Civic Leadership Academy completed their Service Project by beautfiying Arsenal Park in Lawrenceville. The class, with assistance from Lawrenceville United, weeded and mulched trees in the park, cleaned and washed the park's war memorials, and spray painted warning signs on storm drains around the park that drain to the river. Congratulations to all those involved, their hard work and dedication to giving back to the City of Pittsburgh is admirable! Be sure to check out the pictures from the project here!
Congratulations to Reverend Deryck Tines for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Reverend Tines is a committed advocate for equality in our community, serving on the Mayor’s LGBT Advisory Council and serving on Equality Pennsylvania’s Board of Directors! Thank you, Reverend Tines, for your hard work!
Congratulations to Mr. Penny Semaia, the latest recipient of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! As the Assistant Athletic Director of Student Life at the University of Pittsburgh, Penny encourages students to get involved in their communities and prepare for life after college.
Congratulations to the Mayor's Civic Leadership Academy class of Spring 2012! After ten weeks of learning the ins and outs of local government and getting to go "behind the scenes" of many City departments, twenty civic and commmunity leaders have graduated from the program and are ready to take what they have learned back to their communitites. The graduates will be giving back to the City by working to beautify Arsenal Park in Lawrenceville in June!
Read all about servePGH’s latest news and upcoming events in the Spring servePGH newsletter! This edition covers the successes of Redd Up Zone in Oakland, the Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership's great work in East End neighborhoods, and an invitation to help build a community-designed playground in Allegheny Commons Park.
Mayor Ravenstahl’s Office of Service and Civic Engagement is currently accepting applications for 3 year-round AmeriCorps VISTA positions to support the Mayor’s servePGH initiative. Applications are available through Friday, May 25th. Click here for more information and to apply now!
VISTAs (Volunteers in Service to America) commit to serving full-time at a nonprofit organization or local government agency. They work to fight illiteracy, improve health services, create businesses, and strengthen community groups, with the ultimate goal of eliminating poverty in the United States.
Congratulations to Ray Amelio for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ray co-founded the Veterans Leadership Program of Western Pennsylvania and currently serves as Co-Chair on the organization’s Board of Directors, helping to provide essential support services to military veterans, service members, and their families. Thank you, Ray, for the great work you do in and around Pittsburgh!
Congratulations to Mary Savage for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! A pillar of the Homewood community, Mary can be seen planting and caring for the community’s many gardens- rain or shine. She’s also leading the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh’s Love Your Block project in Homewood, creating another garden space for the neighborhood to enjoy.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and The Home Depot Foundation today announced that the Mayor’s Love Your Block program will receive $130,000 from The Home Depot Foundation, enabling the City to increase the number of Love Your Block revitalization projects from 20 to 50 per year and doubling the grant amount to $1,000 per project. The increased funding allows for an impressive expansion of the program and grants the project voted “Best Block Revitalization Project” with an additional $2,000 for future block enhancements. The continued success of the Love Your Block program resulted in The Foundation’s donation amount to substantially increase from its previous $10,000 donation. The Mayor also announced that applications are available for the next round of 25 projects, which will take place this fall.
Are you interested in finding out what it's like to be a Pittsburgh police officer? Do you ever wonder how Pittsburgh’s firefighters train for emergencies, or how the City takes care of its parks and streets? The Mayor's Youth Civic Leadership Academy is your chance to explore these things, and more! Apply now for the free, 6-week program here.
Congratulations to Raymar Hampshire, the latest recipient of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Raymar is the co-founder of SponsorChange.org and a member of the Mayor’s Service Advisory Council.
Congratulations to Mr. Hugh Terry, the latest recipient of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! This is Mr. Terry’s 21st year of volunteering with the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, which helps seniors and low-income residents with preparing their taxes.
Congratulations to Ms. Gena Turner, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ms. Turner is the Chairwoman of the Elliott Community Group, a coordinator of two Love Your Block projects, and a participant of the Mayor’s Civic Leadership Academy.
Congratulations to Mayor Ravenstahl's Snow Angels volunteers, the latest recipients of the Mayor's Citizen Service Award! This past winter, over 120 caring residents served more than 180 neighbors in need, shoveling their sidewalks throughout the season. For more information on how you can volunteer next winter season, click here.
In his Weekly Radio Address, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl discusses the achievements of servePGH’s first year, thanking all of the 1,000+ volunteers who have engaged in impact volunteerism to make Pittsburgh an even more livable City and sharing a few of servePGH’s many accomplishments to-date. To listen, click here.
To read Mayor Ravenstahl’s servePGH Year 1 Report to the Community, click here.
Mayor Ravenstahl recently celebrated the first birthday of his servePGH initiative, issuing a Year 1 Report to the Community! A lot has been achieved in its first year, as this Cities of Service Coalition's newsletter highlights. Be sure to read the story and catch up on citizen service news from across the country.
For an in-depth look at servePGH's accomplishments to-date, click here.
Congratulations to Ms. Alecia Shipman, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! This April, Ms. Shipman will be opening Dream Cream Ice Cream, a project of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Project Pop Up: Downtown and the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. The shop will sell ice cream that benefits local ‘dreamers’, residents who are fundraising for a variety of worthy causes.
Ten organizations from across the City of Pittsburgh have been selected for the second round of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Love Your Block! Check out the complete list of blocks that will be transformed here. This Spring’s projects include an urban literary arts display, community gardens, a façade beautification, a business district revitalization, and vacant lot remediation. Thanks to the Home Depot Foundation for their generous support of this project. Check back soon for more details!
Congratulations to Ms. Tammy Davis, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ms. Davis has been mentoring with the United Way’s Be a 6th Grade Mentor program for the past 3 years and is one of the first City employees to volunteer through the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative. Her support for the initiative has helped the City of Pittsburgh become Be a 6th Grade Mentor’s #1 employer partner.
At last night's annual Meet 'n' Greet Mixer, the Clean Pittsburgh Commission applauded Pittsburgh residents on their tremendous progress in cleaning up our City's neighborhoods, including collecting 1,600 tons of litter over 5 years! Much of this success is due to Mayor Ravenstahl's leadership in neighborhood revitalization, including servePGH initiatives Redd Up Zone and Love Your Block. To read more, click here.
Mayor Ravenstahl’s Office of Service and Civic Engagement is currently accepting applications for 5 year-round AmeriCorps VISTA positions to support the Mayor’s servePGH initiative and 6 Summer VISTA Associates to support Citipark’s Leisure, Learning and Fun summer program. Click here for more information and to apply now!
VISTAs (Volunteers in Service to America) commit to serving full-time at a nonprofit organization or local government agency. They work to fight illiteracy, improve health services, create businesses, and strengthen community groups, with the ultimate goal of eliminating poverty in the United States.
Today marks the first birthday of servePGH! Volunteers and community members came out to The Pittsburgh Project to celebrate by preparing a community garden and enjoying a short ceremony. Thanks to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh for providing delicious birthday cakes!
Mayor Ravenstahl’s servePGH Year 1 Report to the Community was released at the event. If you weren’t at the event and would like to hear about servePGH’s year one accomplishments, as well as goals for its second year, check it out here!
Get the hands-on perspective of one of our hard-working volunteers here.
Congratulations and thanks to everyone who has supported servePGH in the last year; we’re looking forward to an even more exciting Year 2!
Last night, the City of Pittsburgh received the United Way of Allegheny County’s Fred Rogers Good Neighbor Award for being a community leader in workplace volunteerism. Since Mayor Ravenstahl launched the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative in March 2011, over 50 City employees have joined the Mayor in mentoring a local middle school student. Congratulations to all of the City mentors involved in the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative!
Happy AmeriCorps Week! Congratulations to Pittsburgh’s AmeriCorps Members and Alumnni for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award. Hundreds of AmeriCorps members serve in Pittsburgh each year. In 2011 alone, 375 members made a direct economic impact of over $2 million. To learn more about AmeriCorp’s Impact on Pittsburgh, click here.
March 10-18 is National AmeriCorps Week! In 2011 alone, 375 AmeriCorps members served in 9 Pittsburgh-based programs, creating a direct economic impact of $2,353,401. 4 AmeriCorps VISTA members serving in Mayor Ravenstahl’s Office of Service and Civic Engagement have organized volunteers to beautify 47 City blocks; weatherize and restore 22 homes of veterans, seniors, and disabled residents; and maintain 22 half mile zones of City streets. Click here to read more about AmeriCorps’ impact on Pittsburgh.
Congratulations to Mr. Harry Tolbert, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Mr. Tolbert is a long-time resident of Arlington who gives back to his neighborhood by repairing local residents' cars for free and shoveling his neighbors’ sidewalks.
Mayor Ravenstahl will share servePGH’s year one accomplishments and future priorities during an event at The Pittsburgh Project (2801 North Charles Street on the Northside), Wednesday, March 21st at noon. His servePGH Year One Report to the Community, highlighting his seven signature initiatives that have been launched since last March, will be hot-off-the-press and ready to read!
Interested in rolling up your sleeves? Come at 10 a.m. and join us in a “Love Your Block” service project to prepare a community garden for Spring planting.
For more details and to RSVP by March 16, click here.
Congratulations to Hope Academy of Music and the Arts, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Hope Academy provides affordable arts programming and education to our City’s youth, giving many young people the opportunity to train with Pittsburgh’s best performing artists.
Congratulations to Ms. Lindsay Ruprecht, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ms. Ruprecht is the Sustainable Community Development Coordinator for ACTION-Housing, Inc. She is also a committed partner of the Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership, one of Mayor Ravenstahl’s seven signature servePGH initiatives.
Congratulations to Mr. Jeremy Martin, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Jeremy is the Community Outreach and Faith Relations Coordinator at Habitat for Humanity of Greater Pittsburgh and was instrumental in coordinating a Citywide MLK Day celebration with 300 participants completing on 12 different projects, including home repairs and non-profit support.
Children and adults alike are invited to join us at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh for Design Day, facilitated by national nonprofit KaBOOM!, where we ask kids what they want in their playspace and community members to help us make their dreams a reality. Mayor Ravenstahl is partnering with the PA League of Cities and Municipalities, the Central Northside Neighborhood Council, KaBOOM!, PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield to replace a playground in Allegheny Commons Park and build a new, community-designed playground in its place.
Congratulations to Ms. Darlene Yanakos, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! Ms. Yanakos is a graduate of the Fall 2011 Civic Leadership Academy. She spends her time volunteering at numerous local non-profits, including Urban Impact and the National Aviary. Most recently, she was appointed by Mayor Ravenstahl to the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority board.
Applications are available for Mayor Ravenstahl's spring 2012 round of Love Your Block, a program that gives ten community groups or organizations a $500 Home Depot gift card and support of City services to carry out their own brand of block revitalization. Past projects included a popup café, community gardens, a rain garden, memorial restoration, and athletic complex renovation. Apply here by February 29th!
Congratulations to Ms. Colleen Fedor, the latest recipient of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ms. Fedor is the Executive Director of the Mentoring Partnership of Southwestern Pennsylvania, an organization that provides support for mentors and mentoring programs in the Pittsburgh region.
For National Mentoring Month, Mayor Ravenstahl thanked mentors at Allegheny Traditional Academy for their dedication and encouraged them to share their experience with friends and colleagues so that every youth interested in having a mentor can be matched with a caring adult. For pictures of mentors and mentees, including Mayor Ravenstahl, click here.
Rebuilding Together Pittsburgh is the local affiliate of a national nonprofit, Rebuilding Together, that works to preserve affordable homeownership and revitalize communities by offering free rehabilitation and critical repairs to the homes of low-income Americans. Rebuilding Together sent 60+ AmeriCorps members from around the country to Pittsburgh for a week-long celebration of service. Over the past 5 days, they have restored and weatherized 14 homes of seniors, veterans, and disabled residents in North Homewood as a part of the Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership, one of Mayor Ravenstahl's servePGH initiatives.
On January 13th 2012, Mayor Ravenstahl joined Mayor Nutter and 20 of his colleagues in sending a letter to all USCOM members highlighting the impact of the Cities of Service Coalition and calling on fellow mayors to establish a 'Chief Service Officer' position within their senior administrations. Check out a copy of the letter here.
Mayor Ravenstahl's Civic Leadership Academy is a free, 10-week course designed to educate City residents about local government and civic engagement here in the City of Pittsburgh. Click here to apply for the Spring 2012 session. Session will be held each Wednesday evening from March 14 through May 16th.
So far, 77 residents have graduated from the Civic Leadership Academy and have led service projects including revitalizing East Carnegie Parklet, launching a recycling awareness campaign, and supporting the Urban Redevelopment Authority's efforts to improve neighborhood business districts.
Click here to read about Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's reflections on 2011. The many successes of servePGH, his high-impact service plan, have made it to #1 on his year-end Top 10 list! Thank you to the 1000+ volunteers that participated in his servePGH initiatives, bringing in Pittsburgh's Third Renaissance through transforming blocks, mentoring middle schoolers, cleaning up streets, and more.
Congratulations to Ms. Dawn Harder, recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! Ms. Harder is the Clean Pittsburgh Commission neighborhood steward for the Carrick community and engages local universities and school groups in neighborhood cleanups.
Congratulations to Mr. Samuel Su, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award. Su is the Keep it Clean, Oakland! Coordinator at the Oakland Planning & Development Corporation. He is also a Civic Leadership Academy graduate and recently coordinated one of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Love Your Block projects, recruiting volunteers to revitalize Frazier Farms and Frazier Fieldhouse.
Congratulations to Mr. Patrick Flynn, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Flynn is the Member and Community Relations Representative at Riverset Credit Union, ensuring that the credit union’s staff members are involved in at least one volunteer or charity event each month.
Caroline Kennedy recently honored Mayor Luke Ravenstahl with the New Frontier Award “for his commitment to educational opportunity and his innovative service to all the people of Pittsburgh”. Her address discusses the great impact Mayor Ravenstahl is making with his servePGH initiative, as well as the Pittsburgh Promise. Check it out here!
Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Phillips K-5 PTO, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! The group was awarded PTO Today's 2011 Parent Group of the Year National Runner-up for providing the students of Phillips K-5 with fun, creative ways to learn and become civically engaged.
Click here to read the latest edition of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's servePGH e-newsletter. Included are the latest additions to the high-impact service plan, updates on servePGH programming, and a Volunteer Spotlight featuring Kelly Day from Brighton Heights!
Congratulations to Ms. Lisa Ray, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Ray is the founder of Coats for Kids, a program that provides winter outerwear to children in need. She has distributed over 997 donated items to Pittsburgh Concord K-5 students.
Check out Rebecca Delphia’s interview on Policy That Matters, a radio show airing from Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College. Delphia is the City of Pittsburgh’s first Chief Service Officer and is charged with developing and implementing Mayor Ravenstahl’s servePGH initiative. Click here to hear her discuss Mayor Ravenstahl’s commitment to utilizing impact volunteerism as a municipal strategy for addressing local challenges.
Congratulations to Ms. Leshonda Roberts, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Roberts is a committed member of the Sheraden Kiwanis Club, earning the title Kiwanian of the Year. She’s also a member of the Citizens Police Review Board.
In this week's Mayor's Radio Address, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl calls on Pittsburgh residents to revitalize their neighborhoods using the great tools the City of Pittsburgh offers, including Love Your Block and the newly-launched Redd Up Zone.
Love Your Block awards 10 Pittsburgh groups/organizations with a $500 Home Depot gift card and support of City services to creatively transform a neighborhood block. Click here to check out photos from the Fall 2011 projects!
Through Redd Up Zone, businesses and organizations recruit volunteers to adopt a "Redd Up Zone", committing to year-round cleanups in a designated area as well as tracking neighborhood maintenance concerns for the City to address. Volunteer groups are recognized with street signage and are provided with all the necessary cleanup materials.
Congratulations to today's recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award, Mr. Chaz Kellem. Mr. Kellem is the Manager of Diversity Initiatives for the Pittsburgh Pirates and co-founder of Unbreakable Drive. He is a leader in workplace ethics and disability issues and a highly sought after motivational speaker, informing people about the possibilities that life can bring when one has the passion, determination, and motivation to succeed. Thank you, Mr. Chaz Kellem, for your service to the City of Pittsburgh.
Check out the great article on Mayor Ravenstahl's Redd Up Zone program by Diana Nelson Jones in today's edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette! The article highlights this new opportunity for community groups and businesses to receive support from the City to adopt a zone and keep it litter-free for two years. The Heinz History Center in the Strip District and Boy Scout Troop 73 in Lawrenceville have already adopted zones. Applications to adopt zones are being accpeted now at reddupzone.pittsburghpa.gov.
Congratulations to Mr. Ben Lewis, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Mr. Lewis is the founder and CEO of PurBlu Beverages, a company that aims to make the world a better place by bridging the gap between the non-profit and for-profit worlds. Through PurBlu's GIVE line, ten cents from each bottle sold is donated to a wide range of charities. PurBlu also awarded six Pittsburgh-area groups with GIVE Energy Pittsburgh Prizes, providing funding for alternative energy projects. Check out PurBlu Beverage's website to learn more!
For more information on Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award, or to nominate someone, click here!
Congratulations to Ms. Kelly Day, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! Ms. Day is an exemplary model of the positive impact that grassroots community organizing and citizen volunteerism can create. She organized an astounding Love Your Block project that unified residents of Antrim Street and revitalized their block.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl launched a new servePGH initiative, Redd Up Zone, yesterday at Doughboy Square in Lawrenceville. Supported by the Clean Pittsburgh Commission, Boy Scouts of America Troop 73, and the Heinz History Center, Redd Up Zone engages volunteers to enhance Pittsburgh's quality of life through clean streets and blight reduction. Volunteer groups commit to adopting a ½ mile zone for two years, completing quarterly cleanups each year. Click here for more information on how you can join this Citywide redd up effort!
Congratulations to Mr. RJ Thompson, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Mr. Thompson is a successful social entrepreneur, founding Up To Know Good, LLC and Zola Design, LLC, both of which provide local nonprofits with high-quality marketing tools and strategies. He is also a committed fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Check out Mayor Ravenstahl's Weekly Address to learn about servePGH's new program, in partnership with The Home Depot Foundation, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and the Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development. The Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership will repair, rehab, and weatherize homes of low-income vetarans, disabled residents, and seniors in targeted East End neighborhoods.
Congratulations to Mr. Emmai Alaquiva, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award! Mr. Alaquiva is the founder of Hip Hop on L.O.C.K., an after-school program that gives youth the opportunity to work together to create a hip hop record, learning leadership and business skills in the process.
Today Mayor Ravenstahl joined The Home Depot Foundation, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development to announce the Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership. This program is a new opportunity for volunteers to lend a hand to neighbors-in-need by working under the guidance of notable home repair agencies to restore the homes of vulnerable citizens. The parternship will repair and weatherize the homes of veterans, seniors, and disabled residents in targeted East End neighborhoods. We thank The Home Depot Foundation for their support of low-income homeowners in Pittsburgh’s East End!
For more info about the Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership and a complete list of partners, visit our Sustainable Home Improvement Partnership webpage.
Congratulations to Mr. Nicholas Foley, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award. Mr. Foley has recently been named the Boys & Girls Club of America’s 2010-2011 National Youth of the Year. As a part of the Boys & Girls Club’s community for the past 10 years, he has logged over 1,500 service hours!
Congratulations to Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award honoree Mr. Abraham Taleb. As a co-founder of social enterprises TerraShift and ReWork, Taleb connects young professionals with socially impactful career opportunities. In his role as Project Coordinator for Pittsburgh Pipeline, Taleb strengthens career preparedness among urban youth.
Starting this month, 60 City of Pittsburgh employees, including Mayor Ravenstahl, will be mentoring local middle school students through the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative! Big thanks to every one of these committed, caring City employees. Click here for more information on this exciting opportunity.
Not a City employee, but still want to offer your ears and heart to a local student? Check out bea6thgradementor.org for information on how you can help a local 6th grader navigate the road to success!
Participants are only three weeks into Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Fall 2011 Civic Leadership Academy and have already learned a great deal about the City of Pittsburgh’s operations and resources. The Finance department had the class attempt to cut $10 million from the City’s budget, the Urban Redevelopment Authority inspired the participants to think about creative uses of vacant land, and the class helped answer some of the Mayor’s Office’s toughest questions regarding youth policy, sustainability, and neighborhoods. Thanks for all of your great ideas and for your commitment to the City of Pittsburgh, Civic Leaders!
Congratulations to Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award honoree Mr. Henry Reese. Reese is a co-founder of City of Asylum/Pittsburgh, an organization devoted to providing a safe haven for writers under political threat. He is also the publisher of the Northside-based magazine Sampsonia Way, which showcases both local and global writing.
Last weekend volunteers came out to Elliott, West End Village, Garfield, Brighton Heights, and Squirrell Hill for Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Love Your Block volunteer work days! Click here to see photos from the various events.
Some highlights include veterans cleaning a memorial in time for the Veterans Day celebration in the West End, children delivering flowers in hand-painted pots to neighbors on Hillcrest St., the Mayor visiting the site of a future rain garden on Antrim St., and transforming a demolition site into a beautiful butterfly garden in Elliott. Thank you to the many community leaders and volunteers that have partnered with the Mayor in keeping our City beautiful!
Check out the great article on Mayor Ravenstahl's Love Your Block program by Diana Nelson Jones in her City Walkabout blog for the Post-Gazette! The article highlights the upcoming Love Your Block events scheduled for this weekend. Mayor Ravenstahl will be visiting Antrim Street on Saturday morning to check out the beautification project hosted by the Brighton Heights Citizen Federation. Volunteer at an event near you from now through the end of October. For a complete list of events, click here.
Congratulations to Mr. Chris Cooke, the latest recipient of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! Mr. Cooke is the Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Urban Leadership Service Experience (PULSE), an organization committed to developing young community leaders. Read more about PULSE here.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award is a special award that honors individuals and organizations that demonstrate a strong commitment to addressing local challenges and improving the quality of life in the City of Pittsburgh. Click here to nominate yourself or an individual in your community. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award recipients will be honored with a City of Pittsburgh Proclamation and a personal letter of thanks from Mayor Ravenstahl.
Congratulations to the latest recipient of Mayor Ravenstahl’s Citizen Service Award, Mr. Ernie Dettore, who is being recognized for his dedication to play and childhood education in our great City. Mr. Dettore serves on the education advisory board for the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and has published numerous articles on childhood education.
Many transformational block revitalization projects are taking place during September and October across the City. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Love Your Block program asked community groups what they could do with a $500 Home Depot gift card, provided by The Home Depot Foundation, and full support of City services. We were amazed at what they came up with and are so excited to see the results! Be sure to stop by to visit or volunteer at an event near you! Click here for a complete list of events.
Listen to Mayor Ravenstahl discuss the start of the Love Your Block projects during his weekly radio address here!
At an exciting press conference last Thursday, the Youth Futures Commission called on citizens of Pittsburgh to serve as middle school mentors through the United Way’s Be a 6th Grade Mentor program. Mayor Ravenstahl, as a part of the Futures Youth Commission, is helping lead the way with the establishment of the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative. Along with serving as a mentor himself, the Mayor is providing City employees the opportunity to mentor during the school day.
The United way has a national goal of 1 million volunteers and they are looking to Pittsburgh to fulfill 4,000 of those slots! Serving as a 6th grade mentor is just one way that you can “Be 1 in a Million". To find out more about other opportunities or further details on 6th grade mentoring, call the United Way’s helpline at 2-1-1.
Congratulations to Eric Boerer, Advocacy Director at Bike Pittsburgh, for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! Boerer has worked hard to create bike-friendly streets throughout our City, as well as provide free resources to all Pittsburghers. The Award proclaimed August 26th, 2011 "Mr. Eric Boerer Day" in the City of Pittsburgh.
On August 24th, the Mayor's Youth Civic Leadership Academy completed a beautification project in East Carnegie Parklet. The students and many volunteers, including officers from the Zone 6 Police Station, planted flowers, cleaned up litter, and painted park equipment. Their hard work and motivation is commendable.
Congratulations to Mike Hepler, President and CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Western Pennsylvania, for receiving Mayor Ravenstahl's Citizen Service Award! With Hepler's leadership, the Boys and Girls Club recently opened The Zone, a new social enterprise in Lawrenceville. The retail store and cafe offers local teens employment and the chance to learn management and leadership skills.
The servePGH Newsletter has just been launched! Catch up on all things servePGH, including Mayor Ravenstahl's five service initiatives: Love Your Block, Mayor's Mentoring Initiative, Civic Leadership Academy, Redd Up Zone, and Snow Angels.
Continue to stay in the loop by subscribing to the Newsletter and other updates here.
Eleven organizations from across the City of Pittsburgh have been selected as Pittsburgh's first-ever Love Your Block awardees. Check out the complete list of blocks that will be transformed in the Mayor's Weekly Address from July 29th or the recent Post Gazette announcement! The Fall 2011Love Your Block projects include public art, a popup cafe, community gardens, vacant lot remediation, a high school service project, and much more. Volunteer work days will take place throughout September and October. Thanks to the Home Depot Foundation for their generous support of this project. Check back soon for more details!
Congratulations to the Mayor's Youth Civic Leadership Academy class of 2011! After six weeks of learning the ins and outs of local government and civic engagement, twenty-one young Pittsburghers have graduated from the Mayor’s inaugural program. The young graduates will be giving back to the City by revitalizing a playground in East Carnegie. Look for a freshly painted swing set, beautiful flowers, and a clean, green area later this month!
Mayor Ravenstahl has honored Dr. Audrey Murrell with his Mayor’s Citizen Service Award. Dr. Murrell has worked to enhance workplace diversity and fight discrimination by offering pro bono expertise to community organizations and committing to leadership development. She has also served across the City of Pittsburgh as a volunteer consultant and mentor. Congratulations, Dr. Murrell!
The Mayor's Fall 2011 Civic Leadership Academy applications are in, and we can’t wait to start the Mayor’s free program on September 14th! Mayor Ravenstahl created the Civic Leadership Academy to foster more informed, effective and engaged community and civic leadership in the City of Pittsburgh. Participants will spend 10 weeks going "behind the scenes" of City government and learning from the highest City leadership how they can participate in Pittsburgh's revitalization.
Click here to learn more about the Civic Leadership Academy and how you can participate.
Mayor's Office of Service and Civic Engagement
512 City County Building | 414 Grant Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
telephone: 412-255-2280 | facsimile 412-255-2988
