It’s been six months in the planning, but we at hyh are thrilled to launch our new service Live Life.
We are especially proud of this service because it has been set up by former hyh service users who want to use their experiences of homelessness to help other young people.
And we’re delighted that the time and effort Live Life members put into supporting others is already being recognised.
Ricky, who also volunteers for hyh’s Education Service, earned a prestigious Civic Award, the highest accolade given by Welwyn Hatfield Council. Cedric was runner up in the Pro Action Volunteer of the Year Award and on the same night Live Life Co-ordinator, Monika Orzel, scooped Youth Worker of the Year, while Daniel has been nominated for the Welwyn Hatfield Times’ Community Awards.
Live Life replaces iPro (hyh's Involvement Project) and will offer any young person in Hertfordshire with a homeless experience the opportunity to have a say on homeless issues, offer feedback on our services, plan events, learn new skills, and gain confidence and self-esteem.
“It was a real pleasure to be at the launch and see how much Live Life means to these young people,” said hyh’s CEO Helen Elliott.
“They have worked tremendously hard to plan and implement their ideas and you could really see their passion for the project.
“It makes everyone at hyh incredibly proud to be able to work alongside them and we truly value their input throughout all areas of the charity.
“Thank you to everyone who came to show their support for these amazing young people and to The Galleria and Café Giardino for hosting us.”
Live Life Chair, Jonathon, explained what the launch meant to the group:
"Out with the old, in with the new LIVE LIFE.
“So where can I start?
Planning for the big launch at Cafe Giardino in The Galleria, Hatfield...
Each one of us had a special job. The day before the launch we got together to set up and write our speeches.
Daniel, our IT specialist, spoke about his story, his experience with iPro and about Live Life. Savanna as our Creative Director spoke about her designs and her logo that we have used on our leaflets and t-shirts that are amazing.
We also had a surprise speaker Cedric, who had never spoken in public like this before, talking about the history of iPro and how it became Live Life.
My job was the welcome speech and telling people about Live Life and my story.
“My opinion on how it went?
It was amazing, fantastic, brilliant! I can’t think of any other words to describe it, as it all came from our love and passion for the project."