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Show 3Vi MILLION STATE BUDGET SEED MONEY 1 FRUITS OF SEED MONEY Blueprint for Preventin INCLUDE: 30V Spearheaded by Utica, communities throughout New York State JrsJ have developed a program that stamps out juvenile problems before they take root. Delinquency BY I he JOSEPH N. BELL citizens of Utica (pop. 101,000) in New York's Mohawk Valley have discovered that a small investment in youth can pay enormous dividends in positive community understanding between young people and adults. As a consequence, Uti-caare multiplying the money, time, and effort being put into ns their youth centers, playground programs, organized Summer vacation activities, and enlightened handling of youngsters in trouble. Result young people in the Utica area are seldom at a loss for con.'-nctivpastimes, the kind that keep them on the right side of the law. In addition to hundreds of hours of freely contributed effoi t, each citizen of Utica today invests a dollar a year in a formal progiam of recreation and guidance for young people in the area. To this simple but e 4 Family Weekly, August 11, 19 57 unusual formula, one more important ingredient is added an $8,000 contribution and skilled help from the New York State Youth Commission. This adds up to Utica as the center of one of the most enlightened delinquency prevention sections in state in the nation. With the most Utica as a hub, the spokes of this Mohawk Valley youth recreation program now poke into many neighboring communities. For example, a few years ago the hustling nearby town of New Hartford faced a problem common to manv U.S. towns. A large factory had moved into the community, swelling the population almost overnight. The plant was a welcome addition, but it brought with it all the problems of sudden growth. One of the most potent was how to provide a constructive recreation program for the burgeoning number of young people who were on the verge of getting out of hand. A phone call to the Youth Commission brought district representative Jim Cosgrove on the scene. youth-conscio- us He offered the citizens of New Hartford two things: advice on how to organize a juvenile recreation program, and $1,000 of state aid providing New Hartford would match this amount to get the program rolling toward reality. Within a few weeks, New Hartford with the commissions help and Uticas example before them had organized a community recreation program, directed by a representative group of citizens who were willing to contribute time and effort. Last June, the citizens of New Hartford proudly unveiled their prize recreation exhibit: a $285,000 indoor swimming pool financed by a bond issue. Idleness is no longer a major problem among the kids in New Hartford. About the same time, yo- ng people were getting similar attention in other Utica-are- a towns. In Clinton (pop. 2.000), one of the largest indoor skating rinks in the nation was being erected by private citizens who supplied the money and did most of the - |