Coraopolis organization that keeps kids safe after school makes us Proud to be from Pittsburgh

CORAOPOLIS, Pa. — As the kids head back to school, there are so many groups making sure they have what they need when they start the school year.

Coraopolis Youth Creations is making sure the kids have a safe place to go once school is underway too. It’s called The Hub.

“I knew very early on that I wanted to have a community space because I felt it was important for kids to have somewhere to belong,” said Lucinda Wade, executive director of Coraopolis Youth Creations.

That’s why Wade wanted to open up this new center with her nonprofit. It focuses on youth programming for kids in the Cornell School District.

“When we came here, people would say there’s nothing for the kids to do,” said Wade who moved to Coraopolis 17 years ago.

That’s when she started Coraopolis Youth Creations in the basement of her church to give kids something to do. It has since grown from helping a few elementary students after school to becoming The Hub for pre-teens. The grand opening is in October and will focus on activities for middle school kids.

“That’s the age you start getting in trouble,” Wade said. “That’s the age when you don’t have to be home with mom and dad necessarily.”

So she found a location for them to go that, she says, will be easy for kids to walk to from their homes.

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Besides homework help, The Hub will have games and fitness and cooking classes. Coraopolis Youth Creations also has programs specifically for preteen girls and events for families, like the Back to School Bash.

At the most recent one a few weeks ago, Coraopolis Youth Creations gave away 450 book bags. The nonprofit has come a long way from the 50 book bags it gave away the first year of the event.

Wade hopes to grow her group even more to reach more students in the Cornell School District and inspire them.

“Encourage them to be the next business owner, the next nonprofit leader to keep the community thriving,” Wade said.

For more information on Coraopolis Youth Creations, CLICK HERE.