A Peninsula program geared to help young men and women build trust, improve communication skills and develop problem solving abilities may be lost as a result of state budget cutbacks.
More than 200 eighth-graders from Port Townsend to Forks have attended the YMCA Teen Enrichment and Adventure Meetings, or TEAM program.
The program, established about three years ago, costs about $80,000 annually to run and will lose the Middle School Project Grant managed by the state Department of Social and Health Services on June 30 because of budget cuts in Olympia.
Dennis Watson, TEAM program director, said the program has helped Peninsula children develop social skills and feel safe and confident within a group.
“Making the transition from middle school to high school is very stressful,” Watson said.
“We are hoping to keep offering the free program and are seeking private foundation funds.”
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The rest of this story appears in the Tuesday Peninsula Daily News. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.