The Chesapeake Center for Youth Development After School Program helps young people in the Greater Baltimore region overcome barriers to living wholesome, productive lives by providing high quality and comprehensive services through programs and partnerships with other organizations. They are located in South Baltimore’s Brooklyn neighborhood.

Early in the year, I was approached by the Brooklyn Curtis Bay Coalition (BCBC) to help fulfill a City Arts Grant they had received. With the goal of helping better define the Farring-Baybrook park’s borders and bring attention to this often overlooked area, the BCBC planned to produce lamp post banners, as seen in other neighborhoods Baltimore. Each banner would have a standard logo on the front and a different piece of artwork on the back. As part of the grant, the Chesapeake Center for Youth Development’s (CCYD) After School Programs was asked to create the front logo.

Approximately 16 designs ranging from hand drawn to computer created were received for the "Leave your Mark on the Park" logo design contest. With the help of CCYD staff and CAC members, 6 designs were selected for presentation to the community. The ten youth involved in creating the selected designs and met with me between the contest deadline and the town meeting to practice public speaking and discuss our roles in our own communities. Many of the youth agreed that a lot of community members do not see the youth in a positive light. With outreach activities like this, the youth could prove themselves to be vital community members.

On 12 February, Marcus Watts, John Frazier, and Keara Sellman made public presentations of their designs to the Brooklyn Curtis Bay community at large. Following the youth’s present-ations, several community members approached, congratulated, and thanked them for taking an active role in the betterment of their community. The community members voted Marcus Watts, shown in the photo with his logo, winner of the design contest.

The banners were hung at the end of April to coincide with BCBC’s Housing Festival. This one-month project not only resulted in a design to improve the park, but also bettered its participants and the community through personal growth.