A rock legend is helping bring needed life skills to troubled youth in Oakland County.
Bob Seger funded the Dale Carnegie Teen Program at Children’s Village for the month of July.
“It’s an honor to be a small part of bringing this Dale Carnegie Workshop to Children’s Village,” said Bob and Nita Seger in a statement.
“Our son is taking the course and we saw the benefits after the first class.”
The Dale Carnegie Teen Program helps to teach valuable life skills to disadvantaged youth in communities around the world. The three main focuses of the program are building self-confidence and maintaining a positive attitude, learning how to manage stress and focus in times of challenge and building interpersonal skills. Effective attitude management along with teamwork and leadership skills are also taught during the program.
Children’s Village is a residential facility for children and youth who are in need of out-of-home services. They are placed in the home by court order or by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Since 1975, the facility has provided residential care and comprehensive treatment services for youth and their families. Children’s Village is a division of Oakland County’s Department of Health and Human Services Department.
Aaron Danish, Brother Rice High School student and volunteer graduate assistant at Children’s Village, took the course and recognized the importance of the skills he learned. Danish suggested the idea of bringing the program to Children’s Village to his mother Dr. Myra Danish, a Children’s Village Foundation board member.
Mother and son approached the Seger family for their support of this program. According to Dr. Danish, it costs $1,295 for each child to enroll in the program.
They (Bob and Nita Seger) have two kids in their late teens and early 20s,” said Dr. Danish. “Nita and Bob (Seger) have been good in the past in helping our fund-raising efforts at Children’s village. They were on board right away.”
Dr. Danish said her son Aaron wanted every child at Children’s Village to have the opportunity to enroll in this important program.
“I think that this program is important for children in learning life skills,” said Dr. Danish. My son loved it when he took it as a freshman in high school. He came up to me and wished that everyone would have access and an opportunity to take this program.”
Aaron Danish said this program is extremely beneficial.
“If kids don’t have strong family or community around them in their teenage years, how else would they learn these skills?,” said Danish.
The program usually lasts 10 weeks but was compressed into three weeks, six classes, for those children at Children’s Village.
“I understand Mr. Seger prefers no public accolades but when an individual steps up with his generosity to improve the likelihood that our at-risk youth will succeed, I just have to salute him and say, ‘Thank you,’” said Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson.
Dale Carnegie Instructor Kathy Tosian taught all program-eligible teens at Children’s Village in July.
“Thank you Kathy Tosian, you’re an amazing and thanks to Myra and Aaron Danish for presenting this opportunity to be involved,” said Bob and Nita Seger in a statement.
“These kids are part of our future and we’re more than happy to help.”
Twelve children were chosen by Children’s Village staff to participate in the class.
“We selected children that we thought would best benefit from the program,” said Children’s Village Manager Joanna Overall. “This was one of the most unique and beneficial programs we’ve done. I thought what Bob and Nita Seger did was outstanding. This is not something we would have been able to do on our own.”
By: Mark Cavitt