Haiti still needs help, teen leaders from the Community Improvement Through Youth (CITY) Project in Broome County said, as they hosted a multicultural Haitian Appreciation benefit at Binghamton High School, May 22. Working through the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County, the teen leaders partnered with local youth and Binghamton University's Liberty Partnership Program to plan and hold the benefit.

Three of the CITY teen leaders had family in Haiti at the time of the earthquake. "Some of my family members are still outside in the streets. There are still people who need food, who need money, who need supplies. So it hasn't disappeared. Haiti is not yet fixed. We definitely need to come together and help out as best we can," teen leader Barbyly Noel said.

The event featured performances by CITY Project youth and local talent from area schools, churches and community organizations. More than $500 was raised and will be donated to the American Red Cross, Southern Tier Chapter, to support the ongoing Haitian relief efforts.

Using Cornell Cooperative Extension's 4-H Signature Program, Youth Community Action, as a model, Cornell's CITY Project promotes civic engagement, workforce preparation and asset development among at-risk youth 13-18 years old. The project is funded by the Children, Youth and Families At Risk Program, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Videos of the Haitian Appreciation appear on the CITY Project's YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/user/thecityproject and on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/cityproject.