Contests, Projects & Workshops

5/13/2022 0 Comments

Better future program raises ~$1,000 to provide free chest binders to queer and trans students

Since April 24th, activists Croix Hill (they/she), Grayson Swearingen (he/him), Vale Tesch (he/they), Saanvi Gambhira (she/they), Reagan Peters-Roussell (she/they), Jackson Downey (he/they/it), Blaise Singleton (he/they), Maddie/Maverick Isla (they/xe) and Keira Armstrong (they/them) have been raising money to provide free chest binders to the queer and trans students of Benjamin Franklin High School in New Orleans, Louisiana. Today, on May 13th, we are wrapping up our 2022 Binder Drive with nearly $1,000 in donations from our supporters, all in under 20 days!

Here are a few words from Croix Hill (they/she), Black/African Lives Representative and Binder Drive Project Manager:

Hi, I’m Croix and I am the Project Manager for the Better Future Program 2022 Binder Drive.

I first had the idea to do a binder drive for Benjamin Franklin students when I was thinking about how I myself wanted a binder, but there was really no way for me to get one discreetly. This also made me think about how many Franklin students cannot buy binders for themselves because they do not have supportive parents, they are not out, or they cannot afford them. As someone who experiences chest dysphoria I wanted to be able to make a difference in my community surrounding an issue that I, myself, have faced.

At first, I did not think the binder drive was going to be as big of an undertaking as it was, and I severely underestimated the amount of hard work the BFP Advocacy Committee would have to put into the project. Once the binder interest form started receiving submissions though, we realized we needed to advertise the GoFundMe more, both on social media and in school, to accommodate for the large amount of submissions we received. Eventually we reached a plateau of $666 on GoFundMe, so the rest of the team and I had to brainstorm other ways to raise money for the rest of the binders.

We came up with two very successful fundraising ideas to purchase the rest of the binders: a gift card raffle and a Krispy Kreme donut sale. We were fortunately able to partner with a local Black-, Queer-, and Pagan-owned tea shop called Queenly Conjure for the gift card raffle and were able to raise $108 in the span of a week. And last Friday, we sold 3 ½ dozen donuts before school and were able to raise $117.23 in about 30 minutes. In total, with funds from the GoFundMe, cash donations, the gift card raffle, and the Krispy Kreme donut sale we were able to raise nearly $1000 in under 3 weeks for the trans and queer youth at Benjamin Franklin. We were able to supply all 28 students who filled out the binder interest form! It was an amazing experience.

6 Benjamin Franklin High School students stand atop stairs, all with masks on, posing in front of a brick wall.

From left to right, top to bottom row: Pagan Lives Representative Grayson, Gender Equity Representative Vale, Black/African Lives Representative Croix, Topic Inspector Keira, South Asian Lives Representative Saanvi, and Founding Executive Director Reagan celebrate after raising nearly $1,000 to provide free chest binders to the queer and trans students of Benjamin Franklin High School. Photographer: Justine Allen

Visit our gallery for more photos

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5/13/2022 0 Comments

Bans off our bodies rally

Join New Orleanian reproductive justice activists this Saturday from 12:00 to 2:00 pm CT at Duncan Plaza to fight back against the Supreme Court opinion recently leaked which would overturn Roe v. Wade. Please bring a mask to keep everyone as safe as possible!

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5/13/2022 0 Comments

Worker's power rally & celebration

Join us this Sunday from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm CT in New Orleans, Louisiana to fight back against wage theft and worker exploitation. at 701 N Rampart Street. Please bring a mask so we can keep all participants safe!

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5/13/2022 0 Comments

Free Palestine March

Join us this upcoming Sunday in New Orleans, Louisiana to commemorate the 74th Nakba at 219 Loyola Avenue, 3:30 pm. Please wear your masks so we can continue to keep everyone saffe!

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3/30/2022 0 Comments

BFP WEEKLY MEETINGS

Better Future Program is hosting weekly meetings every Friday from 6 pm to 7:30 pm CT on Zoom. Anyone is welcome to join! Each week we discuss organizational updates, current news, ask questions about the social injustices we wish to educate ourselves on, and more.

Tap here next Friday, introduce yourself, and join the family! Time zones confusing you? We can help!

In case a meeting date or time ever changes, join our Discord Server for live updates from our Administrative Staff.

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2/12/2018 0 Comments

New Orleans Mission

We'd like to give a large thank you to New Orleans Mission for helping us out with our Eye See You Project. Keep reading to find out what New Orleans Mission is and what they do!

New Orleans Mission

Founded in 1989, the New Orleans Mission provided shelter, food and spiritual guidance to a growing number of homeless men who were living on the streets of New Orleans. Today, the Mission is the largest faith-based private service provider to the homeless population of the greater New Orleans area and the economically disadvantaged residents of the Central City. Their core value is about changing lives and leading people to a loving relationship with Jesus Christ. They do this through a variety of programs and services that are designed to holistically meet the mental, physical, social, and spiritual needs of the individual we serve. Their strategy is to RESCUE people from homelessness, strengthen the RECOVERY efforts of the people seeking their support, and fostering their successful RE-ENGAGEMENT into society as healthy, disciplined skilled people ready to lead a sustainable productive purpose-driven life.

To learn more visit: www.neworleansmission.org

******

"It is not to share your food with the hungry and to
provide the poor wanderer with shelter ---
When you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn
away from your own flesh and blood?
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your
healing will quickly appear;
Then your righteousness will go before you,
And the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard."
Isaiah 58:7-8

~Lexi Chan & Raychelle Puppy

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10/4/2017 0 Comments

Thank You!

Hey guys! It's October! I am so glad that autumn is finally here as it is one of my favorite seasons. October happens to be Breast Cancer Awareness month, Bullying Awareness month, and of course the month that Halloween takes place. Look out for posts regarding those topics! We once again want to thank Filipe Duarte, an amazing Brazilian artist who made a most wonderful card for our 2016 Breast Cancer Awareness Project to create cards for breast cancer patients. I can't wait to see what projects and contests will be coming up soon. BFP would also like to thank Lake Forest Charter Elementary in New Orleans, LA for working with us to collect glasses for hurricane victims. This Friday is the last day to donate a dollar or dollar store reading glasses. We are very very close to 1,000 glasses! Our goal was only 200, so thank you very, very much! We should be setting up a gallery page soon with pictures from all of our projects and contests.

~Lexi Chan
Founder of Better Future Program

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9/6/2017 0 Comments

Updates on the Eye See You Project

Hi guys, it's Lexi Chan. Here are some updates on the Eye See You Project.

Now, if you haven't been keeping up, here is a quick recap of what the Eye See You Project is. The Eye See You Project's original objective was to collect reading glasses to donate to homeless shelters. Since Hurricane Harvey has devastated parts of Texas and Louisiana, Better Future Program has decided to focus on donating reading glasses to Hurricane Harvey victims. We have paired up with Lake Forest Charter School, an amazing elementary and middle school in New Orleans, Louisiana. Together we are having kids bring in no longer needed, yet still usable pairs of reading glasses and/or a simple dollar to buy reading glasses to donate as well. Our goals is to donate at 200 reading glasses, but we're now expected to donate at least 600 which is pretty amazing! The class at Lake Forest Charter with the most glasses collected will get a pizza party funded by BFP which has definitely motivated the kids there. Thank you so much for the support, and thank you Lake Forest Charter for letting us work with you for the Eye See You Project!

~Lexi Chan, Founder of BFP

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6/11/2017 0 Comments

The "Eye See YOU Project"

This is "Eye See YOU Project." Go ahead and collect prescription glasses and reading glasses that you can't use anymore (or someone you know who can't use theirs anymore) because we will be using them for a great cause. Collect your glasses and put them in a bucket or plastic bag. If you happen to know their strengths, please label them. Go ahead and drop a small card in saying your name so you can be thanked of course for who you're about to give these too. Also, add that for more projects or educational resources that those who have access to the internet should check our website at betterfutureprogram.weebly.com. Now take those glasses off to a nearby homeless shelter or ship them there. BFP Contributors have talked to owners of homeless shelters and unsurprisingly, people come in almost everyday asking for glasses. Better Future Program thought this would be a helpful project to pull off. We would love for you to start collecting glasses as soon as you can. Ask whoever you can, family and friends.

More specific details, rules, and regulations will be released in July and/or August. Good luck guys!

~Lexi Chan, Founder of BFP

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5/9/2017 0 Comments

Dream Big Contest - 2nd Place, 3rd Place, & Honorable Mentions

2nd Place goes to December Dragon! Congrats!

His winning story, Blood Dreamer, is very interesting and gory, but poetic at the same time. It definitely deserved to win!

I close my eyes and sleep.
I sleep for a little while while before I’m dragged,
By my feet,
Out of bed
And into the hall.
I fight,
But am kicked,
I fight more,
I get kicked even harder.
I grab the leg and twist it,
Screams pierce my ears
I know it’s broken.
They drop me and stand around,
Then all I see is fists and legs and flashes of stars,
And I feel the sharp pain with every fist, foot, and star.

After what seems like hours,
They drag me outside.
There’s a crowd,
I must be lucky.
I’m dragged to the middle and held still.
I can’t move at all,
I can only see through one eye,
My breath staggers,
I taste copper,
I feel terrible pain.

Soon, my best friend is also dragged in,
I barely recognize his face,
It’s red and swollen.
Blood pours like lava from a volcano
From infinite amount of cuts.
He is dragged in front of me,
His arms held behind his back,
He’s also breathing as badly or worse than me.

What is going on?
I ask to myself,
Too weak to talk.

I don’t have to wait long,
A big fellow with blonde hair
Steps into the circle and raises his hands in silence,
The crowd,
Like the dogs they are,
Fall instantly silent,
And he speaks:

‘This is what happens to betrayers’
He says more to the crowd than to us
‘This is what you get for leaving us,
This is what you get for backstabbing.
There must be blood to repay this debt to us’
At this,
The crowd starts saying ‘blood’
And stomping.
Slowly increasing the pace and volume.
He smiles and offers his hand,
Someone places a knife,
A knife I will always remember,
Gold handle,
Black cords wrapped around it,
Forked tongue tip of the blade,
Shiny as sliver in the night.

He kneels in front of my friend,
And says
‘Beg and I’ll make it quick’
My friend smirks and spits blood on to his face.
He leaps up and swipes at my friend’s face.
Instantly, a waterfall of blood gushes down his face.
He doesn’t move or seem to be bothered.
The leader
(I assume)
Becomes more angry.
He walks back up and starts carving into my friend's head.
I try to turn away,
But I’m petrified by the scene.
I can’t move,
Or shout,
Or cry,
Just watch,
As my heart tears open.
I watch as blood starts to flow like a river,’
From his head and down to the grey cobblestones.
There, it makes a pond,
Then a pool,
Than a lake,
And after hours,
An ocean.

‘Blood, blood, blood!’
The crowd shouts.

My friend doesn’t utter a sound.
His eyes closed with pain,
He’s probably biting his tongue.
After a while,
The leader starts on his face.
This time,
My friend manages to get an arm free.
He launches it between the leader’s legs,
And doesn’t let go.
I see his arm tense,
And know that he’s grabbing
And crushing something with all his strength.
The leader screams,
For a big guy
He screams like a little girl,
High pitched
And panicked.
I see the pain in his eyes,
In his screams.
He swipes at the arm with the knife,
Over and over.
Blood flies everywhere.
It hits me;
It lands in my mouth;
It intermingles with my own,
Yet my friend doesn’t let go.
The leader cuts and cuts,
With each cut more panicked than the other,
Until bone is revealed to the night.
He stops swiping, and breaks the arm.
He tears it off and tosses it to the side.

‘Blood! Blood! Blood!’

I see anger in his eyes;
I see the fury;
I see the fierceness;
I see the pain.
My friend is dead now…

‘BLOOD...BLOOD...BLOOD…’

He runs up to my friend and stabs him in the head,
Then runs the blade from the head to down the neck,
Without taking it out.
He swipes over
And over
And over
And over.
Blood flies like a fountain in a water park.

‘BLOOD! BLOOD! BLOOD’

My friend falls to the ground,
His head facing me.
I see his life leaving his eyes,
I see the blood pouring from millions of wounds.

‘BLOOD!!! BLOOD!!! BLOOD!!!’

I wake up,
With the copper in my mouth
And the chant,
That I will hear for all of eternity,
And the thumps,
That will forever beat into my soul.
And my pillow wet,
With my eyes stinging,
Unable to see for hours,
Unable to sleep for days.
This is my brand in my head.
This is the dream I will hold forever more.

Congrats! Keep on reading to see 3rd Place and Honorable Mentions!

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5/9/2017 0 Comments

Dream Big - 1st Place Winner!

1st Place for the Dream Big Writing Contest is...Devyn Hoshour also known as Dev!!! Congratulations!

Her winning piece, Music Box, is a short and simple poem but it truly captures the essence of a dream!

In the split second mirror of a music box
Lays the heart of an adventure in pause
A warrior who's bow is laid across her tin chest
A pause in her music box's song so she may rest
Eyes closed but Ive seen the gold and ice she keeps
Within her body, within her mind, within her sleep
She dreams of running away to lands where time runs to emotion
She dreams of seas of love and chaos that turn into oceans
When she sleeps she sees the stars in his eyes
When she sleeps she only needs a flame to reach the sky
But when she awakes she will guard her grace
Awaken the warrior that lies within her unspoken tastes
A heart to blame for her chaotic explosions
A warrior in the music box of dream and commotion
She rests and she dances, a metal, tin dancer in the blank room
A spirit who's lived for so long she's surely doomed
To live in a world of secrets in her sleep
Only to awake to the world that seeks her defeat
A beauty in the garden of faith and time
A streak of color in the midnight sky

So, thank you for participating and we'll send you your gift card shortly! Check to see if you won second, third, or honorable mentions on the next post (which will be above)!

~Lexi Chan
Founder of BFP

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4/7/2017 1 Comment

April Writing Contest - Dream Big!!!

Hey guys! Our April Writing Contest is finally here! So, your prompt this month is very very simple! Write a story, a poem, rap, song, ANYTHING, about your dreams. This can be dreams as in your life goals or some crazy dream where you got chased by monsters! Do whatever you please. WINNER RECEIVES A $10 AMAZON GIFT CARD. 2ND AND 3RD PLACE RECEIVE BFP CERTIFICATES! All entries will be posted on the website like previous contests. We just have a few rules!

Rules + What You Need To Know

1. Do not use profanity in your writing piece please!
2. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will be chosen based off of grammar, spelling, and relevance to the topic.
3. Make sure to send your entries to the email below by 4/30/17:
BetterFutureProgram2016@gmail.com.
4. There will be more than one Main Contributor judging your piece so no worries! It isn't based off of one person's opinion. A few professional authors will be reading them too.
5. Have fun with this prompt! Be creative! PLEASE don't feel restricted to let your creativity flow.
6. If you want to, you can add an illustration to your work. It's not necessary though.

Love you guys and good luck!
~Lexi Chan

1 Comment

12/1/2016 1 Comment

December Contest! - Holiday Carols

I wonder who can write the best original holiday carol?

Since it's nearing Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, we need some holiday songs to prepare for the season! This month, BFP wants to see who can write the best holiday song! Winner gets the official BFP Holiday Caroler certificate.
Contest ends on December 22nd, 2016!

RULES & REGULATIONS!

All songs must consist of original lyrics!
Do not use profanity or mature topics in your song because of Better Future Program's viewers!
Send all entries to BetterFutureProgram2016@gmail.com Click the sentence in grey to get the link to the email!

~As usual, ALL entries will be posted. Good luck and happy holidays from all of BFP!~

1 Comment

11/17/2016 0 Comments

Upcoming...

Get ready for the upcoming career workshop!

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11/17/2016 0 Comments

Past & Current Projects

Past

Breast Cancer Awareness (click here to see)

Current

Khan Academy BFP Class

Before The Flood

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YOUR CART

Events

Better future program raises ~$1,000 to provide free chest binders to queer and trans students

Bans off our bodies rally

Worker's power rally & celebration

Free Palestine March

BFP WEEKLY MEETINGS

New Orleans Mission

New Orleans Mission

Thank You!

Updates on the Eye See You Project

The "Eye See YOU Project"

Dream Big Contest - 2nd Place, 3rd Place, & Honorable Mentions

2nd Place goes to December Dragon! Congrats!

Congrats! Keep on reading to see 3rd Place and Honorable Mentions!

Dream Big - 1st Place Winner!

1st Place for the Dream Big Writing Contest is...Devyn Hoshour also known as Dev!!! Congratulations!

So, thank you for participating and we'll send you your gift card shortly! Check to see if you won second, third, or honorable mentions on the next post (which will be above)!

April Writing Contest - Dream Big!!!

Rules + What You Need To Know

December Contest! - Holiday Carols

I wonder who can write the best original holiday carol?

Upcoming...

Past & Current Projects

Archives

Hours

YOUR CART

​Events

​New Orleans Mission

2nd Place goes to December Dragon! Congrats!

Congrats! Keep on reading to see 3rd Place and Honorable Mentions!

1st Place for the Dream Big Writing Contest is...Devyn Hoshour also known as Dev!!! Congratulations!

So, thank you for participating and we'll send you your gift card shortly! Check to see if you won second, third, or honorable mentions on the next post (which will be above)!

Rules + What You Need To Know

I wonder who can write the best original holiday carol?

Archives

Hours

Events

New Orleans Mission