Hopeworks Alumni Celebrate 543 at State St. BBQ

We had so much fun catching up with Alumni on July 7th! The Hopeworks Alumni Network hosted a BBQ at the CRIB, giving alumni a space to celebrate our State Street home as well as the expansion to a new space. It’s really amazing to see Alumni staying connected with us, especially as we make this move.

Charlene Newbill, Hopeworks Alum and current Youth Healing Team Lead, attended the BBQ and enjoyed seeing her old friends! After the BBQ, alumni spent time at 543 State St. removing their self portraits from the walls and reminiscing. These portraits are made by each trainee during their training with us and reflect their own personalities and styles. Charlene says, “The self portraits are important to me because it was a way for trainees to express ourselves and show off our creativity, which is why I'm so excited about about seeing our self portraits in the new space!”

Although it is bittersweet to no longer be in North Camden everyday, we are so grateful to stay connected to our State St. location via the CRIB and our Esperanza Community Garden, and we are excited to have the space to change more young lives. Destin Brooks, Hopeworks alum said, “I went from one life to another in just 7 months at Hopeworks.” We hope to be able to have that same impact on even more lives.