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They Called Us the ‘Green Shirts’: Disaster Response with Texas Conservation Corps

Article, written by Megan Helton, appears on the CNCS Blog.

We arrived in Bastrop, Texas, while the wildfire was still burning, the fire camp still buzzing. Fresh off two months in Joplin, MO, Texas Conservation Corps eagerly accepted the mission assignment to support volunteer and donations management. We slid into the chaos of the Emergency Operations Center, and put our heads down, getting to work organizing, outreaching, ordering all the offers of support that were coming in from throughout the country.

They called us “the green shirts.” We didn’t know that at first, but the name stuck and more and more people in the Disaster Recovery Center and in the County Judge’s chambers would reference it. So we started to speculate and think about the bigger picture.

We weren’t entirely aware of how we ended up in Bastrop County, and no one locally really had any clue who these AmeriCorps kids were and where we had come from. They just knew we were, almost against all odds, getting things done. They liked that – a lot.

2011 was a formative year for AmeriCorps and disaster response, and we walked away from our deployments with a new direction for Texas Conservation Corps. Building upon our experience in Bastrop, we formalized relationships with the Texas Division of Emergency Management and OneStar Foundation, our State Commission on Volunteerism. We added 30 AmeriCorps members to our portfolio, members who are recruited, trained, and on call for disaster deployments for the State of Texas and beyond.

Now, we work with our new partners to plan and create models of how to use a variety of National Service resources in Texas to address all four phases of disaster. We provide disaster training to other State AmeriCorps programs, we co-teach classes on Spontaneous Volunteer Management. We attend state Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) meetings. Nationally, we are an active AmeriCorps Disaster Response Team (A-DRT) in the Disaster Services Unit program, and work to promote training and cross program relationships that unite us as A-DRTs.

In 2013, we deployed to the Oklahoma tornados alongside two other A-DRT teams; AmeriCorps St. Louis and Iowa Conservation Corps.  We had served with these programs during the Joplin response. While it was a difficult deployment (we had AmeriCorps members serving in five counties), the ease with which we became an AmeriCorps operation and not separate programs serving alongside one another spoke to the value of preexisting relationships during times of disaster. We saw the same thing when we deployed to the West, Texas, Fertilizer Plant Explosion, and were given increasingly important and sensitive tasks. Those at the top of the organizational chart already knew the capabilities of “the green shirts.”

Texas Conservation Corps AmeriCorps members change each year and often do not get to see the outcome of the kindness, compassion, and work ethic that they show communities after a disaster. But each incoming crew is aware of a legacy that they are asked to live up to, of a good faith foundation that built their AmeriCorps experience. It is this sense of whole community that strengthens our members into engaged citizens, and bolsters our country’s ability to recover.

Megan Helton is Field Coordinator for Texas Conservation Corps at American YouthWorks.

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Montana Conservation Corps Featured on the Wilderness Risk Management Conference blog

Article, written by Rahel Manna, appears on the NOLS Blog. Published August 12, 2014.

In this installment of the Wilderness Risk Management Conference blog series, we are focusing our attention on the Montana Conservation Corps (MCC). This nonprofit development program for young adults has been following in the footsteps of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s, using conservation projects to foster citizenship and personal growth in its members. WRMC staff caught up with Montana Conservation Corps Program Director Lee Gault, who represented MCC at the WRMC 10 years ago, and asked him about the dynamic relationship that has been evolving between MCC and the WRMC for over a decade.

In the span of one year, the MCC, as a single branch, is able to train 300-400 participants of varying age groups and backgrounds. The different programs offered at MCC also vary greatly. One program in particular, the Veterans Green Corps, serves American military veterans who are “transitioning from military to civilian life” and “range in age from 24-35” said Gault. Using the training and exposure that the MCC program provides, many American veterans who are MCC alumni are able to transition into civilian positions and go on to work with the national parks service and the national forest service.

In addition to the veterans program, roughly 80 percent of MCC members are young adults who work on projects ranging from bioresearch and watershed restoration to trail restoration, community service, and much more. While at MCC, participants go through a maturation process brought on through challenging projects and “usually return with a firm commitment to advocate for, protect, and defend wilderness and our public lands in general” said Gault.

The MCC curriculum is designed to help members foster a deep-seated passion for the great outdoors through leadership development, technical outdoor skills, and environmental stewardship. MCC field programs hire “about 250 young adults, 18-30 years old from all over the country and all education levels,” Gault said. “All of them are AmeriCorps national service participants, and they serve varying length terms of service from a three-month summer term to a full nine months. We also serve around 150 Montana high-school-age teens in our summer Youth Service Expeditions program. They do a month-long mini-MCC experience completing most of the same work as our field crews.”

After such a longstanding commitment to attending the WRMC, we asked Gault to explain why MCC decides to send staff to the WRMC year after year. “We have found the WRMC to be the best professional development opportunity for risk management related to our field. There are topics relevant to every staff person at every level. It keeps us abreast of the state of the art in risk management, and it exposes our staff to the top thinkers and practitioners in the field,” Gault explained. “Every year we make changes and adaptations to our current practices, procedures and policies based on things we learned from the WRMC.”

Gault emphasized that the WRMC has provided a better experience for MCC participants: “[The WRMC] has helped in almost every area: screening and intake, hiring, training, leadership, field communication, in-field medical care, fostering positive crew dynamics, technical practices, emergency response, even office practices.”

As a community-empowering conservation organization, MCC stands as a great asset to the outdoor community and we are proud to have them as a contributing member of the WRMC family once again this year. If you are a community-based conservation organization, come take advantage of the opportunity to network with the knowledgeable staff from MCC and other similar organizations. Please join us at Stone Mountain Park in Atlanta, Georgia, October 1-3, 2014.

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Being Lake Wise with Vermont Youth Conservation Corps

Article, written by , appears on the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Watershed Management Division blog.

In late July, a few residents at Lake Dunmore participating in the Lake Wise Program were selected to have some shoreland Best Management Practices (BMPs) installed on their lakeshore properties. The labor was provided by the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps(VYCC).

Lake Wise award winning participant Kate Williams of Leicester proposed to her neighbors that the community beach area could be more lake-friendly by making a few improvements as recommended by the Lake Wise site visit team. The community liked the idea and purchased the minimal materials needed for the project. The VYCC crew did the installation of a wide set of infiltration steps to control erosion where community members access the lake with canoes and sailboats. A small berm/swale to shorten the distance needed for water flowing downhill to move into the wet no-mow zone was installed and the children’s lakeside sand ‘pit’ was given wooden sides that will contain the spread of the activity area and hopefully keep more sand in the pit and out of the lake. And though more vegetation is needed on this site, a number of native blueberry plants were planted in clusters along the lakeshore.

Also in Leicester, the VYCC crew helped to reduce surface erosion on a steep slope at Sue Potter’s residence by leveling existing paths and steps, installing rock-toe and an infiltration trench, and most importantly- -lots of groundcover planting! Sue was very pleased with the results saying, “I am more impressed than ever with the result of the effort these young people put into the project.  I am so thankful to have won their help. The project is really very nice and already made an impression on the neighbors!  I have given your contact information to a neighbor wanting to be involved with the Lake Wise Program and more people are asking me about it.  It probably helps that I point to my award sign every time someone goes by the dock!”

Amy Picotte and Eddie Haynes with the help of volunteer Peggy Barter, visit several homes a week on Lake Seymour in Morgan and are finding that lakeshore residents are really appreciating the visits and useful tips provided by the Lake Wise program. For more information on Lake Wise, please contact Amy or Eddie at: Amy.Picotte@state.vt.us    Eddie.Haynes@state.vt.us

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1,100 Tires and Counting: Volunteers Reach Milestone in Cleaning the Cedar River

Article, written by Jenae Peterson, appears in the Austin Daily Herald. Published August 15, 2014.

Volunteers working with the Cedar River Watershed District have pulled more than 1,100 tires out of the Cedar River in Mower County since 2011.

“To have this major initiative with the Conservation Corps of Minnesota & Iowa and Adopt-A-River folks cleaning it up, we’re really excited about the state of the river right now,” CRWD resource specialist Justin Hanson said.

On Thursday afternoon, a group of about eight volunteers from the Conservation Corps helped pick tires out of the Cedar River for the seventh straight day and crossed the 1,000-tire mark. Crew leader Travis Wilder was excited about their progress.

“We’ve pulled out 431 [tires], and that number let us exceed 1,100 tires pulled out of the river by volunteers,” Wilder said. “It’s very gratifying to see all the tires piled up that we pull out each day.”

Another Conservation Corps group pulled about 220 tires from the river last fall during a two-day cleanup. The group worked in October last year, but water levels have been fairly low this August, allowing the group to find more tires.

“At this time of year the water’s low enough where we can see most of them and be able to get them out,” Wilder said.

The group covered a stretch of river about 19 miles from Austin to the state line, according to Wilder.

Although the number of tires is high, Hanson was pleased that many of the tires they found were not new.

“Almost all of these tires have been here for many years, probably 50 years plus,” Hanson said. “I think that’s a really good sign that there’s been some education and that people are better informed.”

According to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, large numbers of tires being found in the state’s waterways stem from a tire disposal problem in the state during the 1970s and 1980s.

With all the cleanup initiatives, Hanson said this is the cleanest the river has been in a while. Yet it’s not just cleaning tires from the river. There have also been pollution control efforts to limit what runs into the river farther upstream.

Tim Ruzek, CRWD’s public-outreach coordinator and co-chair of the Austin Vision 2020 Waterways Committee, said the cleanup efforts have made the Cedar River the cleanest that it has been in likely many decades.

“All of us Vision 2020 Waterways volunteers greatly appreciate these cleanup efforts as they further improve our local, scenic waterway and help our work to enhance and promote the recreational opportunities on the Cedar River State Water Trail,” Ruzek said in a press release.

Hanson has hopes the CRWD will get a break from cleaning up the tires.

“We’ve been at it pretty intensely now for a few years, and the idea is that there won’t be new added tires thrown in,” Hanson said. “We’ve gotten the major part of the problem addressed.”

The Conservation Corps is one of about 11 groups that have worked to clean the river, as Hanson said the Adopt-A-River program has been successful since it’s start in 2011.

“We’ve had members that have adopted every section from the top of the county and the watershed all the way down to the border,” Hanson said. “We’ve been really excited about that.”

Hanson was thankful for all the groups that spent time to help clean the river, especially the Conservation Corps.

“We’ve had really good guys and gals that have come down here,” Hanson said. “We’ve been really lucky and fortunate to have as much time down here, dedicated to our resource.”

Although the group saw other items in the river, such as a pontoon, burning barrels, scrap iron and a pay phone, this cleanup focused specifically on tires. The group plans to return Monday to clean the same stretch of river again, but with a focus on scrap metal.

In Mower County, the Cedar River is designated as a State Water Trail under a DNR program after the CRWD successfully proposed and secured the legislative approval in 2011.

Earlier this summer, Conservation Corps members, working with CRWD, cleared several log jams on the Cedar along a stretch in the Wildwood Park area in Austin that is prone to jams. That stretch from Ramsey Dam to the Downtown Mill Pond now should be portage-free for canoeists and kayakers thanks to the crew’s work. Read more about that project here.

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Fighting Fire with Fire at AmeriCorps NCCC

Article, written by Corpsmember Rachel, appears on the AmerCorps NCCC blog. Published August 20, 2014.
 
I had the privilege of being part of the Sun Unit fire management team, we were based out of Fort Collins, Colorado from mid March to late July.  We were working with the USDA Forest Service doing fire mitigation and suppression. My team spent our first 2 weeks in a classroom so we could get our Type II Firefighter certifications and red cards. We learned a lot, and had hands on training so we knew how to operate a fire engine and dig a fire line. We learned how to fight fire aggressively, while simultaneously keeping in mind the necessity for safety and communication out in the field. 
 
Our team had been warned months before that our time with the Forest Service would be mentally and physically exhausting, and the people who told us that certainly weren’t lying. Each work day brought along new challenges, but being surrounded by such a supportive team definitely helped me get through those longer days. Usually we had to hike long distances to get to our work site, which was then followed by hours of physical labor and then an equally long hike out. Every time we did this we had our fire packs on which can weigh anywhere from 30-45 pounds. They have important things like water, food, a fire shelter, and extra PPE. We also carried our tools and other supplies we might need for any given project.

The first two months we were able to go out on a lot of prescribed burns. These burn projects help get rid of trees that could make fire behavior more extreme.  The days we lit the burn piles were a lot of fun, but they were usually followed by days of “mop up.” Essentially mop up required our team to go back to the burn area and check piles to make sure they were no longer hot. The first two months we were with the Forest Service we had burned and secured approximately 100 acres.

 
When the weather got warmer, we worked on a thinning and clearing project up in the mountains. It was an interesting role reversal, because our time was then spent creating burn piles that the firefighters will light this upcoming winter. A lot of chain sawing was done to cut down dead trees in the area, and this will provide protection to nearby homes and towns in the event that there is a fire. 

One major theme throughout the entire experience was the need to be “fire ready” at all times. We were warned early on that we could be called to respond to a fire at any given moment. Every day when we went to our worksite, we always packed like we would not be back to our housing for 2 weeks. Overall though, the fire season was pretty uneventful because of all the snow and rainfall. Once we were called to an unattended campfire, and there were a couple of times we were sent out on a fire only to find out on our way there that it was a false alarm. It’s crazy how much our adrenaline would start pumping whenever we heard word that there was a smoke report or potential fire in the area. 

There was only one fire in our area throughout the 4 months we were near Fort Collins. It was close to 4 acres in size, and it had been caused by a lightning strike. Thanks to the help of other firefighting crews in the area it was quickly contained, and our team helped with mop up on the following days to make sure it was completely cold. It was also fairly close to a residential area, so it was really rewarding for our team to know that we played a part in protecting a community from immediate danger.  The 12-16 hour days were definitely difficult, and I can only imagine how exhausting it must be when there are larger fires that require weeks of constant work. 

Overall, my time with the Forest Service was one of the most challenging and exhausting experiences I could have imagined. I had no idea that I would try out for the firefighter team when I signed up for AmeriCorps NCCC, but I’m so glad that I did. I had the chance to learn a lot, and I pushed myself physically and mentally every day. Even though we had no idea what each day would bring, we stayed positive and kept our focus on the impact we were making. My team worked hard to help protect the communities in and around the national forests. I am so proud of us for what we managed to accomplish.

More Than 400 Corpsmembers On California Wildfires

Corpsmembers on the Bald Fire in the Lassen National Forest.

From the California Conservation Corps

The California Conservation Corps continues its fire response efforts, with 411 corpsmembers — 31 crews — assisting Cal Fire and the U.S. Forest Service throughout the state.

The largest contingent is on the Lodge Fire in Mendocino County.  In Southern California, CCC crews are providing logistical support on the Tecolote Fire in the Angeles National Forest.  Corpsmembers are also working on seven other wildfires. The crews are from 18 CCC locations throughout California and are providing both logistical support and initial attack on the firelines. 

The CCC, one of the state’s premier emergency response forces, has provided more than 100,000 hours of fire response work on 45 different fires since July 1. Crews from every CCC center have been called out.

Gulf of Mexico Foundation Works with Texas Conservation Corps to Train Youth, Plant Marsh Grass

 
 
Conservation group plants marsh grass in pairs
By JOHN WAYNE FERGUSON | Posted: Sunday, August 10, 2014 11:44 pm
GALVESTON — Planting marsh grass isn’t necessarily a hard job. But it is a two-person one.
And when you have 1,000 plants to get into the ground, it’s better to to have a team with you.
This weekend, about a dozen members of the Texas Conservation Corps worked in pairs to plant marsh grass on the shores of Eckert Bayou.
One team member used a dibble to make a hole in the muddy soil of marshland and another would put the plant, spartina alterniflora, into the ground, then mash the soil back into the hole. “It’s not for everyone,” said corps crew leader Erica Keller, as her team walked through the mud and tried to ignore the pounding Texas heat. “Sometimes it’s about going outside your comfort zone.”
That hard work does pay dividends.
Alice Anne O’Donnell, whose property was the site of the planting project, said the Corps was a “godsend.” The marsh plants helped protect her house from the debris when the waters rose 7 feet during Hurricane Ike.
The marshes also provide crucial habitat for birds and other animals to live and feed in. O’Donnell said a similar project had been completed in the past, but years of natural erosion and fishermen walking through the marsh from a nearby boat ramp had destroyed part of it.
Members of the Conservation Corps, which is affiliated with the AmeriCorps program, are used to tough work. They camp out on tops of mountains and in pine woods, restoring nature trails and habitats
and performing disaster recovery and mitigation work across the state’s varied landscapes.
Many of the participants in the program are college-bound or recent college graduates, looking for a way to help pay for the cost of school. This week, however, the corps did more than just manual labor.
 
During their two-week deployment to Galveston, the conservation corps also participated in classroom sessions aimed at teaching the participants more about the technical aspects of conservation work and policies.
 
“We are a crew that usually does hands-on work,” Keller said. “We have had the opportunity this week to begin to learn about the other side as far as things like permitting and outreach. The stuff kind of besides the physical labor.”
The corps activities were organized by the Gulf of Mexico Foundation, in corporation with groups like the Galveston Bay Foundation. Mikell Smith, the Gulf of Mexico Foundation’s program director, said Texas is on the verge of
beginning a large number of conservation projects, and there will be a critical need for well-trained, well-informed people to help complete them.
That’s what the foundation hopes to do by establishing a training program in Galveston.
“Any time that you’re doing any kind of work, no matter how labor intensive it may seem, it’s really important to get it right,” Smith said.
That’s why making sure that the people who would be leading conservation projects — the kind of people who might belong to the Conservation Corps — are well trained and ready to lead.
 

Montana Conservation Corps Restores CCC Built Fish Hatchery

Local stone mason Jimmy Plovanik assists crew members with stone wall repair Tuesday. The seven-person MCC crew made much progress on the park at Big Springs Trout Hatchery this week.

This article was originally published by the Lewistown News-Argus.

Fish hatchery park gets make-over

 


The Montana Conservation Corps crew working on the fish hatchery make-over includes (from left) Timothy Gillispie, Helena; Eric Barr, MCC co-leader, Florida; Taggert Street, Helena; Sharanne Dement, Great Falls; Logan Callerg, Great Falls; Albert Leavell, MCC leader, Maryland; and Amanda Knorr, Helena.
By KARL GIES
Special to the News-Argus
Published:

Wednesday, August 13, 2014 11:01 AM MDT
Editor’s Note: This week, Montana Conservation Corps volunteers came to Lewistown to assist community members with the park at Big Springs Trout Hatchery. The volunteers did not just clean up the area; they also did some stonework and landscape work.

Having MCC do this work is fitting, Gies said, as it was the Civilian Conservation Corps that constructed the park in the first place.

Most of the park facilities at the Big Springs Trout Hatchery southeast of Lewistown were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in about 1936, almost eighty years ago.

The  CCC was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25.  Robert Fechner was the head of the agency. The program was a major part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, and provided unskilled manual labor jobs related to the conservation and development of natural resources in rural lands owned by federal, state and local governments.

 

Now, almost eight decades later, the Montana Conservation Corps is doing repair and renovation work at the fish hatchery park. The Montana Conservation Corps grew out of stories of men joining and serving in the Civilian Conservation Corps, stories that can be heard at coffee counters across Montana in places like the Empire Café. Tales of the accomplishments of the CCC to improve the landscape and the spirits of the young people who joined are numerous, and verging on mythical, in the best tradition of Montana.

This week, MCC workers are busy repairing the facilities built by the CCC. These MCC workers include five Montana high school students and two supervisors in their twenties. The supervisors work right along with the kids.

In two days the crew has accomplished much of the repair of rock work in the big pool, building trails and pulling weeds. They have two more days of work left. Local master stone mason Jimmy Plovanic has been right along side of this crew, showing them how to do the repair and renovation work on the stone walls. These walls are simply stacked stone, but of course, stacked in an aesthetic and lasting way. Jimmy has made a great contribution in sharing his expertise.

The project leader on the park renovation is Eric VanderBeek. Eric has been a strong leader, including working to obtain $14,000 in grant money for the project. Locals Brad McCardle, Lewistown trails manager, Clay Dunlap, retired educator, and Clint Loomis, retired educator and artist, have also worked hard on this project. All have spent countless hours on planning and implementing the project. Much credit on this project goes to Paul Pavlak a Lewistown resident who started the ball rolling on this park renovation.

Karl Gies is a member of the Big Spring Creek Watershed Association.

 

Youth Conservation Corps Restores Landscape of Adlai Stevenson II’s Home


Local teens working with Youth Conservation Corps restored the white fence Adlai Stevenson II sat on for this historic photo shoot.
 

Originally published in the Lake County News-Sun
By Linda Blaser
 

Work to restore the historic home of Adlai Stevenson II surged ahead this summer through the blood, sweat — and possibly tears — of a Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) crew.

The teenagers installed a 216-foot length of white slatted fencing, including sinking 27 8-foot-long fence posts, attaching three 1-by-14-foot slats per section and painting the entire fence white.

“It was quite a job,” YCC Manager Luke Bowman said.

The teens’ combined effort brings back an important historic element of the property, which is poised to receive a National Historic Landmark plaque at a special ceremony on Oct. 12. The house is located at 25200 N. St. Mary’s Road in Mettawa.

“We replicated the original fence in order to restore the look of the property to the way it was when (Stevenson) lived there,” said Katherine Hamilton-Smith, director of cultural resources at the Lake County Forest Preserves.

In fact, a famous photo of Stevenson sitting on the original fence graced the cover of LIFE magazine in 1965, after he died.

The YCC crew of three boys and three girls, plus crew leader and assistant crew leader, also spent several weeks clearing out invasive plants and trees that grew around a large oak Stevenson often stood beside to view the river.

“We made a lot of headway,” Bowman said of the clearing project.

Removing the fast-growing maples from around the slow-growing oak was essential to maintaining the historic tree and opening up the canopy so the oak will get the sunlight it needs.

It is the second year a YCC crew worked on clearing out the small-diameter sugar maples, buckthorn and other invasives that grew beneath the historic oak.

“This year we made it all the way to the river,” Bowman said of the clearing. “Now we’re working both directions to make the view wider.”

Work on the historic Stevenson home — particularly the fence — was one of the top priorities for the 2014 YCC summer program.

“I was willing to set the whole summer aside to get the fence right,” Bowman said.

A total of 36 teenagers from across Lake County spent eight weeks this summer working on restoration and construction projects to improve forest preserves throughout Lake County. For the past 15 years, YCC has partnered with the Lake County Forest Preserves to provide summer employment for high school students and to teach them valuable life skills.

“We’re working extra hard right now to maintain the property and have it look wonderful,” Hamilton-Smith said of the Stevenson home, which houses the Adlai Stevenson Center on Democracy.

The National Historic Landmark plaque presentation this fall will bring together a number of dignitaries, elected officials and other special guests to mark receipt of the prestigious honor.

“National Historic Landmark designation is a big deal,” Hamilton-Smith said. “This won’t happen again (in Lake County) any time soon.”

The Stevenson house is the second Lake County Forest Preserve District property to receive the designation — the first was a portion of the Fort Sheridan Historic District — and it is the first 20th-century Illinois politician’s home deemed a national landmark.

Corpsmember of the Year Eliseo Nunez Gives Keynote Address at Annual Passport to Life Career and Education Expo


More than 800 youth offenders attended the sixth annual Passport to Life event held on the San Diego City College campus. Speakers from the juvenile justice system spoke and attendees were able to participate in workshops and resource exhibits from literacy to job preparedness.— Peggy Peattie, UT-San Diego.
 

Taken from UT-San Diego
By Dana Littlefield 

SAN DIEGO — Like so many people who ended up addicted to drugs, Anakaren Ruano spent a lot of time chasing that first big high.

She started smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol when she was a high school freshman, and later started using ecstasy. Then, after her first stint at a rehabilitation facility at age 15, she tried methamphetamine.

“I felt like Wonder Woman,” said Ruano, now 19, giving a keynote address Friday to a large group of young people who’d had contact with the juvenile justice system. “It’s because of that feeling that people become addicted…

“To me, meth equaled me having fun.”

But it wasn’t long before the fun ran out. On one particularly gruesome occasion, Ruano found herself vomiting blood after mixing methamphetamine and cocaine. She said she was “locked up” nine times.

“Nothing was enough,” she said.

It was a sentiment — an attitude, maybe — that other teens and young adults in the room could probably relate to. Hundreds packed the bleachers in a San Diego City College gymnasium for the sixth annual Passport to Life Career and Education Expo, held to help youngsters who either are or had been on probation get tools they need to be productive, law-abiding adults.

“We’re not trying to scare you straight,” Chief Probation Officer Mack Jenkins told the crowd. “We’re trying to help you make better decisions.”

The event included workshops on such topics as pursuing education after high school, landing a job and gaining financial literacy. Several local organizations participated in the event, including the San Diego Superior Court, County Office of Education and the District Attorney’s and Public Defender’s offices.

“The message is to show these kids that the mistakes they’ve made in the past don’t have to define their future,” said Juvenile Court Judge Carolyn Caietti, who came up with the idea for Passport to Life one day while driving to work.

Eliseo Nuñez, 27, gave the second keynote address Friday morning. He admitted he didn’t like speaking in front of crowds, but he looked comfortable dressed in a button-down shirt, slacks and suspenders, his tattoos peeking from beneath his collar and a fedora perched on his head.

“I was that young man that was posted on the block 24/7,” the now ex-gang member from Oceanside said.

He talked about doing drugs at age 13 with his own father and getting locked up at 16. And he talked about being sent to state and federal prison. Then came the day when he realized how much life he was missing while he was behind bars. He saw that his own father had given up drug use in the years before he died of cancer.

In March 2012, Nuñez got clean, too. He finished high school, enrolled in college, and this year he received a national leadership award for his work with the Urban Corps of San Diego County, which teaches and counsels at-risk youth.

“I’m able to give back what was so freely given to me,” he said.

Ruano also welcomed the chance to give back. After years of drug abuse, including an alcohol-poisoning incident that almost ended her life, she has been sober for nearly two years. She went back to high school and graduated last year with her class.

“It was the best feeling of my life,” she said of walking across the graduation stage in cap and gown. “No drug had ever given me that kind of high.”

The day after graduation, her probation term ended. She recently completed her first year at MiraCosta College with a 3.5 GPA.

“You’re looking at a soul that’s not even supposed to be here, but I am,” Ruano said, adding that she’s not much older than many of those in the crowd.

“I got clean when I was 17 and I just want you guys to know that you can do it, too,” she said. “And you don’t have to hurt everyone in your way. You don’t have to hurt yourself and you don’t have to end up that person that’s six feet under because you never got it through your head to change.”