We are not only experiencing wonderful summer weather at The Vision Center, but we are having another great SYNERGY Program.

Each of our 44 interns have been placed at their work sites and we expect to have great reports from their supervisors.

Our Teen Tech program is in full swing, as well as our Robotics program -- so you can see we are very busy.

As I sit at my desk, I think of all of you who have been so supportive of Mercy Works. And we want each of you to know how grateful we are for everything you have made possible.

You are helping thousands of young people in getting a vision for their lives. We would never be where we are today if we did not have friends like you.

So, on behalf of our board and staff, especially all the young people that have walked through the doors of The Vision Center, THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS.

clarence’s corner thank you!

togetherwemakeadifference

“TOGETHER WE ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE”

CONTACT USMercy Works P.O. Box 25

Syracuse, New York 13205315.435.6934

www.mercy-works.org

VISIT USThe Vision Center

1221 South Salina StreetSyracuse, New York 13202

OUR STAFFTracie Brennan

Clarence JordanGina Rivers

OUR BOARDReverend John R. CarterTheresa M. Morgan, CPADavid C. Rollinson, Esq.

Terry BishDr. Thomas P. Cappa

Reverend Lisa L. CarterReverend Joseph L. Coudriet

David HunterIrene Morgan

Carmen SpinosoJake Tanksley

Ed J. Thompson, Esq.

Clarence JordanDirector of

Development

Mercy Works, Inc. is a 501 (C) – 3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to identifying and meeting various social needs of the local community by engaging and empowering urban youth and their families through programs that instill vision and a sense of purpose.

Mercy Works owns and operates the Vision Center.

The Vision Center is one-of-a-kind teaching and resource center for at-risk youths and their families.

Want to help us help others? Remember us in your will --

Ask us how!

Have a car you don’t need? Donate it!

Contact us to learn more!

THE FACES OF SYNERGY 2012Meet all 44 of our leadership trainees! Turn the page to hear more from

them on: service projects, work, & orientation. For more SYNERGY,VISIT US AT WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/VISIONCENTERSYRACUSE

Aaron

La

Mont

agne

Sher

ice S

imps

on

Adrian Kellam

Aman

da J

olly

Amber Green

Arbai Ramazani

Ashe

llee

Spea

rs

Quan

isha

Jenk

ins

Gina Wright

Ibrahim Muya

Imani

Shabazz

John

nisha

Ro

use

Iryon

na

Scru

ggs

Jess

ica E

verso

n

Malcolm Walters

Olivia

Har

rison

Toyin

Ben

-Shid

ah

Suzie Odom

Shadayvia Wallace

Rach

el Mc

Millia

n

D’Artist Vaughn

Quiee

sha

Burn

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3

volume 10 | issue 4 | august 2012 | www.mercy-works.orgmakingadifferenceisworksmercy

Jade Ratchford

Keisha Lloyd

Keith Rowser

Vince WisehoonTanika

Delee

Abeer Al-ziadi

Allorra Allen

Britt

any

Burk

e-Ph

illips

Charlene Murray

Diamond Ruffin

Gresa Uka

Jamar Mason

Karysa Humphrey

Kian

u Mora

les

Leon

dra

Polk

Maja

y Do

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Maria Tran

Sabr

aya

Ches

tnut

Sang

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SYNERGY’SPHENOMENAL

“a few words from our SYNERGY students”

SYNERGY is making a difference within us, and we are going to make a difference for others. Karysa Humphrey

The only person who can stop you is you. Remember we can achieve our visions, it’s only a matter of time - until they are a reality. Olivia Harrision

When we are inspired, we act as a mirror reflecting our inner light out into the world. Ibrahim Muya

I am completely grateful for SYNERGY. It’s a place for future professionals to build their résumé and interpersonal communication skills, aid the community, and grow as individuals. I am

now a second year participant and I can truly say that I would not be as fluent in my areas of study without the hands-on experience that I have gained throughout SYNERGY.

You can read a book, go to school, sit in class for hours, and still come out of school not knowing what you want to pursue in life. Or, you can team build, acquire firsthand EXPERIENCE, and grow in SYNERGY and come out on top KNOWING what you want to pursue while developing a passion that you did not even know was there. Gina Wright

Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off of your goal. Malcolm Walters

Since starting the SYNERGY program I feel a sense of fulfillment that I wouldn’t have felt otherwise.Allorra Allen

By: D’Artist Vaughn, SYNERGY 2012, Track 3

Little did we realize how successful our Golfless Golf Tournament would be when we first planned it.

We had the most sponsors we have ever had 45 as well as new sponsors.

The biggest reason for its success was due to our anonymous sponsor who matched all of the sponsor’s giving. People love to have their sponsorships matched.

A big thank you goes to Lamar Advertising who posted the logos on their billboards.

Because of the success of our Tournament, we were able to place 44 students in our summer SYNERGY program.

A BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO SPONSORED THIS TOURNAMENT.

TOTAL RAISED:$69,050

TREMENDOUS RESPONSE TO GOLFLESS GOLF

TOURNAMENT

Proving to be an amazing experience, SYNERGY is a program unlike any other that I have been involved in.

For many great reasons, “empowerment” is the first word that comes to mind when I think of SYNERGY.

By the end of each day, I feel empowered to strive for what I truly believe in, and even more empowered to achieve my own unique goals. Even the energy and the amount of care the staff put into this program and this program’s purpose are encouraging to me.

SYNERGY presents new and exciting ways

to exercise many of the important skills required to strive in a professional environment.

When I participated in the SYNERGY program in 2008, I learned the culture of the professional world with a class of approximately 15 students.

Now, four years later and with 43 other students, I’ve been given the excellent opportunity a second time to grow in areas that I am weak in, gain experience in my field of study, and most importantly to me, work together in combined efforts to help others in my community.

Different from what I’ve experienced in the past, each day is presented with a theme that relates to one of the three focuses: professional development, service growth, and financial fitness, all of which are keys to a successful future.

I am grateful to SYNERGY for laying down the stepping stones to vision, and with my newly obtained skills, I am confident in taking those steps to find my own.

a fresh perspective: synergy then & now

HOW LONG WERE YOU IN THE SYNERGY PROGRAM AND WHAT YEAR DID YOU GRADUATE?

I was in the SYNERGY program for 3 years and I graduated in 2007.

To the left, current SYNERGY Student, Gina Wright, interviews Chenard Williams, one of the first SYNERGY participants ever.

It was great to interview someone who has been through some of the same things we are going through right now. It was also reassuring to see someone so successful come out of the SYNERGY program. Gina Wright

ANY ADVICE FOR THE CURRENT SYNERGY STUDENTS?If you can, take notes! Not about the lessons

taught to you, but about what you’re doing. Get a notepad and write down what you don’t like

so that you are able to look back and see what you need do to get to the next level and get a

job that you do like. It’s almost like a marriage; everyone has issues, overcoming them is the

challenge.

HAS SYNERGY PLAYED AN INTEGRAL ROLE IN YOUR CURRENT STANDING?

SYNERGY has made me appreciate the meaning of hard work and not being afraid to step up

to any challenge. The SYNERGY program has helped shape and mold me into the professional

that I am today. It gave me a clear path and a clear VISION!

WHERE ARE YOU CURRENTLY EMPLOYED?I currently work at INFICON Incorporated which specializes in giving you the tools for exceptional, reliable results: critical sensor technologies and advanced process control software, gas analyzers, helium and refrigerant leak detectors, vacuum gauges, and on-site toxic chemical analysis for life-saving decisions.

GET T O KNOW SYNERGY ALUMCHENARD WILLIAMS

By: Gina Wright, SYNERGY 2012, Track 3

Keisha Lloyd, a recent graduate from Henninger High School, is a first-time SYNERGY participant, but she’s ready to shine.

She describes herself as a “hardworking person who likes to help people and bring a lot of positive energy.”

Keisha finds inspiration from her past and uses that motivation for tomorrow. “All my excuses, I’ve turned them into something positive…I’m not just doing this for myself anymore,” she says.

She may be young, but she has a clear vision for her future and she believes SYNERGY will help make her vision a reality.

“I love being in SYNERGY because it’s teaching me how to develop myself more efficiently...It’s teaching me how to conduct myself in the work field and with other people. If it wasn’t for SYNERGY, I wouldn’t have learned these valuable things,” she says.

This fall, Keisha will be a freshman at Le Moyne College, where she will be studying Electrical Engineering.

“I see myself owning my own Electrical Engineering company. I want to be the first black manufacturer of cars -- and as a black female, I think that speaks a lot.”

When asked what she is looking forward to most this summer, she replied: “an iPad,” then laughs, “psych.” She continues, “I’m really looking forward to seeing the end result -- of becoming a better, changed person.”

“They believe in you,” she says of the program, “The love everyone shows here, they won’t give up on you unless you give up on yourself.”

SYNERGYSPOTLIGHT K E I S H A L L OY D

NEVER THINK OF NOW -- ALWAYS THINK AHEAD, BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW THE POSSIBILITIES.

NEVER GIVE UP, EVEN WHEN YOU THINK YOUR TIMES ARE HARD, THERE’S ALWAYS SOMEONE WHO HAS IT HARDER.

By: Olivia Harrison, SYNERGY, 2012, Track 3

A special thanks to The National Grid Foundation for their generous support of SYNERGY! The National Grid Foundation donated $15,000 to Mercy Works in support of the service learning

component of SYNERGY. This is the second year that we have been awarded this grant. The National Grid Foundation is committed to contributing millions of dollars every year to deserving

programs focusing on energy renewal, education and the environment.

Get the free mobile app athttp:/ /gettag.mobi

VISIONA S S I G N M E N T

=1 person $100 idea need endless possibilities

THE BARNEY II FOUNDATION

The summation and validation of this quote can be found within the two weeks that made up SYNERGY’s implementation of the BARNEY II FOUNDATION VISION ASSIGNMENT.

On June 29, 2012, the 44 Leadership Trainees were each handed an envelope, they were astonished to find a crisp $100 bill inside along with an illustration and contract outlining its purpose: this money is not yours, it must be used to better the life of someone other than yourself, and you must bring back proof in the form of documentation and an oral presentation.

Many students found motivation in the words of the cynics who warned “90% [of you] will pocket [the money].”

After serious deliberation and even a few collaborations, the students returned to tell their peers and others about their contributions -- it was an emotional and inspiring day. The Leadership Trainees impressed everyone in attendance as they shared their stories and testimonies.

KINDNESS IN WORDS CREATES CONFIDENCE. KINDNESS IN THOUGHT CREATES PROFOUNDNESS.

KINDNESS IN GIVING CREATES LOVE. Lao Tzu

VISIONVISION

A S S I G N M E N T

A S S I G N M E N T

VISIONA S S I G N M E N T

VISIONA S S I G N M E N T

Ashellee Spears, Sherice Simpson, & Maria Rose Tran provided these supplies with their money:

They will touch the lives of several families! These items will help the following refugee families: 2 Cuban couples arriving this week, a family of 3 coming from Nepal next week, a pregnant Burmese woman with one child coming next week. Also a single Burmese man and a Burmese husband who is being reunited with his wife! Wow! -InterFaith Works of Central New York Refugee Resettlement

THE TEEN TECH GRADUATING CLASS OF SPRING 2012 PICTURED WITH

GRADUATION KEYNOTE, BAYE MUHAMMAD, COMMISSIONER, SYRACUSE PARKS & RECREATION.

I thought, my presentation wasn’t going to be as good...After hearing other people’s stories, then I said to myself ‘Oh Arbai, you really did help somebody in need, sending that money to the Refugee Camp of Kenya, to my two single aunts with orphan children really made me feel great about myself.

And it taught me to always remember that there are millions of people out there who are in need. The Barney II Foundation challenge taught me better ways to help someone else’s Life.

If I can get a $100 everyday to help the less fortunate I will spend my sleeping hours just thinking of what to do with the $100 when the sun rises...Seriously... -Arbai Ramazani

I can’t thank everyone enough for going above and beyond over the last two weeks with the Vision Assignment! Many of us expressed that we knew we wanted to have an impact on someone else but because it was unexpected, our minds went wild with ideas! From beginning to end I was amazed and in awe of what everyone was able to accomplish in such short time. Honestly, if we could do this in two weeks, with these outcomes, just imagine what the world would be like if stuff like this occurred everyday! Amongst all of the tears and stories, a sense of humility filled the room. The one thing that I have taken out of this specific experience is that whether it be big or small, complex or simplistic, having an impact is having an impact. No matter what is behind the dollar sign, it’s about sharing with others and that is truly priceless. Once again, thank you for the kind hearts of the Barney Foundation. You believed in us and we did not let your investment go in vain. God Bless!

-Charlene Murray

Use your smartphone’s QR Code Scanner App to see The Post Standard’s coverage of the Barney

II Vision Assignment. Just scan this code to

see what our leadership trainees did to service

the community!

TOyin Ben-ShidahAaron LaMontagne

Bill and Sabra Reichardt