It was their first day of summer vacation, but Nate Raabe andAlexUmbdenstock spent the sunny day indoors.
The South Side middle school students and some friendsvolunteeredabout eight hours last Friday to paint the community room of theTransitional Living Center, 3128 N. Hemlock, as part of their "ToMake a Difference" project.
Raabe and Umbdenstock won the junior high division of the "ToMakea Difference" contest earlier this year.Sponsored by the Citizens League of Greater Spokane, competingteams researched problems they saw in their community and presentedpossible solutions to a panel of city officials in April.Teams from around the city tackled issues ranging from teenagepregnancy to literacy.Raabe, 14, a Sacajawea Middle School student, and Umbdenstock, 13,from Chase, teamed up to study homelessness."We realized that homelessness is a big problem," said Raabe, hishair and left ear splattered with yellow paint. "We thought we couldhelp make a difference."The two chose to study the Transitional Living Center, wherehomeless mothers and children can go for clothing, child care andskills training.They started by surveying the residents. They also interviewedthe director and researched homelessness on the Internet.Many of those surveyed said something as simple as a brightercommunity room to spend time with their children would give themincentive to face the future."It seemed like a pretty easy solution," Umbdenstock said.Raabe and Umbdenstock won $1,000 for their efforts, and anadditional $1,000 Junior League grant, which they spent on paint andcarpeting for the room.They plan to enter the contest again next year, possibly to expandon what they've already learned about homelessness."We've learned a lot," Raabe said. "We realized once we startedon this that a lot of the homeless look just like us."
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