The Youth Ed-Venture & Nature Network (YENN) continues to raise funds to purchase a bus to transport youth from the Albany area to its outdoor and environmental programs in the Adirondacks and Catskills.

To date, a campaign on Adirondack Gives, Adirondack Foundation’s crowdfunding website for community groups and nonprofits, has raised $3,200 of its $5,000 goal.

“Year after year, one of the YENN’s biggest challenges in bringing young people from Albany to the Adirondacks is transportation costs,” YENN Executive Director Jaimz Edwards said when the fundraiser was announced. “We have raised money, successfully, in the past to cover these costs, but we now hope to solve this issue by purchasing a bus for our organization. This bus will not only allow us to focus on delivering the best possible programming, but also give our kids a sense of pride, as we plan to paint and decorate the bus so everyone will know when we’re in town.”

To make a donation, or for more information, visit http://bit.ly/TheYENN.

The YENN is a strategic partnership of individuals, organizations, and agencies dedicated to increasing awareness and engagement of the young people of the Capital District of Albany, New York, with the common interest in conserving the natural environment, and expanding the number and quality of opportunities for children, youth, young adults and families to reconnect with nature.

Founded by Brother Yusuf Wasi Abdul, the YENN believes that exposure to the natural environment can have a positive effect on human health, and that exposure and access to green space can also have a wide range of social, economic, environmental, and health benefits. Through the YENN, Brother Yusuf has exposed generations of young people to the Adirondacks.

Brother Yusuf passed away in December 2014, but his legacy lives on. Now led by Jaimz Edwards, the YENN continues its mission of connecting youth with nature.

To learn more, visit www.theyenn.com.

Photo of YENN participants after a Sacandaga River paddle in the summer of 2015 provided.