By Carolyn Briody
Summer is just around the corner, and for South Tucson children, plenty of programs are available to keep them busy and out of trouble.
Beginning in late May after school ends, the South Tucson Police Department provides several programs for youths.
"When kids are not in school, juvenile crime rates tend to increase, but not a great deal," said Ed Cahas, South Tucson school resource officer.
"We are there for kids. We want to keep them busy Monday through Friday," said Cahas, who has been with the South Tucson Police Department for six years and became certified as a G.R.E.A.T. (Gang Resistance Education and Training) officer in January.
In collaboration with Tucson Parks and Recreation, the Boys and Girls Club and Pima County, Ed Cahas and Benny Gomez, along with the South Tucson Police Department, will start G.R.E.A.T., a national program that runs from the end of May through July.
On May 31 at 5:30 p.m., a G.R.E.A.T. orientation will provide sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders with applications for the program, which their parents must fill out in advance.
Both Cahas and Gomez, the administrator for the program, have designated sites at several schools in and around South Tucson where children can meet during the week.
Created to educate children and get teachers and officers involved in the community, the program gives children the opportunity to go on field trips and volunteer for community service-type projects around Pima County.
Cahas wants children to know that they are on an equal level
with teachers and officers.
"Our goal is to let the kids know that everyone is the same,"
Cahas said.
Other summer programs will be offered:
· Project YES, a year-round program, available to children of all ages.
· Wakefield Middle School provides an inter-session
class in July for those students who may need extra help with
school work, and do not do as well during the regular school year.
For more information on Wakefield summer school, contact Wakefield
Middle School, 101 W. 44th St., at (520) 617-6180.
· Pueblo High School offers two sessions of summer school
beginning on May 29 and June 14, as well as the "freshman
summer experience," which prepares incoming freshmen for
high school.
For more information on summer classes at Pueblo, 3500 S. 12th
Ave., call (520) 617-7500.
· The new Randolph Park at 29th Street and Kino Boulevard will be a safe, supervised and monitored area for kids to play baseball, Cahas said.
"We have several police officers acting as umpires at Randolph," Cahas said.
Gomez is bringing "Junior Explorers" back to South Tucson. Junior Explorers, which originally ran during the 1980s, is another program that gets South Tucson youth ages 14 to 20 involved in public safety work. For more information on any of the programs run by the South Tucson Police Department, contact the department, 1601 S. Sixth Ave., at (520) 622-0655.
The South Tucson Fire Department and Los Artes also provide free summer programs through August for children of all ages. For more information on the fire department program, contact the South Tucson Fire Department, 1601 S. Sixth Ave., at (520) 622-3309. For more information on the Los Artes summer program, call (520) 791-3540, or visit 23 W. 27th St.