LEWISTON – Volunteers of America Northern New England operates Maine’s only federally and state funded Juvenile Day Reporting Program. The program applies best practice principles to aid in reducing recidivism among the referred youth who are under the supervision of the Region 2 Division of Juvenile Services. One component of the program is public service. Youth who are enrolled complete approximately 20 hours of community service in a variety of ways.

Each year staff and youth from the Juvenile Day Reporting Program participate in Lewiston’s Adopt-a-Spot program.

This year’s Adopt-a-Spot is managed by Laurie Hearne, a Day Reporting Center staffer who came up with the idea of planting flowers in the shape of a peace sign in the Kennedy Park spot. Hearne believes that “the park needs peace.” Hearne and the agency hope to convey the message through the work put into the flower garden.

Volunteers of America shares the mission of community reintegration and stabilization with its two primary funding sources, the Juvenile Justice Advisory Group and the Maine Department of Corrections for the at-risk youth they serve.

Public service is one of the many ways Day Reporting youth stay busy and productive in the community. For more information about Volunteers of America, visit the Web at www.voanne.org.