May Media Toolkit

May 2022

Slide into Summer

Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination!

I LOVE summer. I love it when the sun comes up early and wakes me. I love flip flops and shorts. I like to be warm (not hot, but warm). I like warm evenings where I can sit outside and talk with friends and family. I do not care for mosquitos (although they LOVE me), but that is what Avon’s Skin So Soft is for. This time of year, the summer, is when I thrive.

Unfortunately, summer can have the opposite effect on school-age children. Two months of reading skills–and if reading skills slip then everything slips–and more than two and a half months of math skills can be lost over the 12-weeks between the end of one school year and the beginning of another. It takes teachers about six weeks to play catchup in the fall. This phenomenon is somewhat- affectionately called the “summer slide,” or summer learning loss. Additionally, there’s the risk of early childhood death during the extended school break–you know it’s imminent when your children say things like, “I’m so bored I’m going to DIE!” The onset of this fatal disease typically occurs in week two of summer vacation. What is a parent to do?

My Discovery Destination! and the Discovery Family Coalition have the antidote for summer doldrums, and it’s called the Summer Passport Program.

There are well over 100 fun, flexible, FREE Adventures in the main hub that families can do on their own time. There are also mini-hubs for science, arts & crafts, reading and a special PreK hub. Each of the Adventures have the added benefit of keeping kids' bodies active and minds engaged.

Did I mention they are FREE?

They are FREE to families because of generous grants from the Bear River Health Department, the Central Utah Public Health Department, and the Davis County Health Department. Completing the Summer Passport Program Adventures comes with REWARDS. Families can earn FREE, fun experiences from multiple Family Reward Event Partners in the grant areas, but the biggest rewards are the benefits that come to your family because you are spending time together.

Give your kids a better “shot” at healthy minds and bodies during June, July and August. You cannot hold back the changing of the season. Summer is coming. But, you can avoid the potential retrogression that can accompany it–the Summer Passport Program is the cure.

We are very excited to be in the planning stages for the Summer Passport Teen program. We are asking for students’ input and we have some AWESOME prizes for the most engaged students and student groups (a pair of annual passes to Lagoon, a $200 shopping spree and a Summer Fun Pack consisting of passes to Get Air!, Seaquest, and more!)!

Generous grants from the Bear River Health Department, the Central Utah Public Health Department, and the Davis County Health Department have made this program possible and we want to reward students for participating.

During the month of May, students can get connected to the I SEE YOU Discovery Hunt.

This year’s theme is designed to encourage our youth to let each of their peers know that they are seen. Spread the word about this “scavenger’ hunt specifically designed for youth.

Join us in our efforts to strengthen families and build resilience in youth.

See the tab for this event.

We are SUPER excited to have been selected out of 4,000 entries to be one of 200 in the running for a $25,000 grant.

Please help us win by

1. Voting for us! (You can vote up to 10 times each day.)

2. Inviting others to vote for us. Get some ideas on how to be most effective below:

Advertising media:

Video for announcement screens. You can also find it on YouTube: Coming Soon.

Social media posts. Please share them on your social media and encourage everyone you know to share as well:

• Facebook: COMING SOON

• Instagram: COMING SOON

Texting Campaign:

We think our community needs some extra funding to make suicide prevention events and programs possible. A $25K grant should do it! You can help us make a difference! Vote for 'I See You' at Unique URL Code: https://bit.ly/assistutah

Things to remember:

• Voters must be U.S. residents who are 18 years or older and have a valid email address.

• Each person can vote up to 10 times per day.

• Since the 100 winning causes will be selected by popular vote, we need to spread the word. In addition to campaigning for this important cause via word-of-mouth, social media can be a valuable tool in generating attention for your submission and drumming up votes. Remember, any social channel is a good channel for sharing!

Posting Ideas:

Facebook

• Notify friends and family through status updates that you need support for this project. You can choose to make certain posts public or single out individual friends or groups of friends by changing the privacy settings beneath the status update box.

• Include the title of the cause (I See You! - Connect. Bond. Love.) along with the unique URL (https://bit.ly/assistutah) to link directly to our page so supporters can easily vote.

• Include key information in your posts such as the grant amount ($25,000), why people should vote for this cause (suicide prevention is a HUGE need in Utah communities!), what the grant money will go toward (suicide prevention programs) and that people can vote up to 10 times per day from April 27 through May 6.

• Please post regularly to help us stay top of mind, and interact with anyone who engages with your post and votes for the project to thank them and keep them engaged.

• Include #SFNeighborhoodAssist and tag @statefarm to make it easier for people to find your post.

• Encourage your friends and family to share this important cause information through their Facebook page and other social media platforms.

Sample Posts:

We think our community needs some extra funding to make suicide prevention events and programs possible. A $25K grant should do it! You can help us make a difference! Vote for 'I See You' at Unique URL Code: https://bit.ly/assistutah

This year, State Farm Neighborhood Assist® is giving out more grants than ever before, and you can help our neighborhood win a $25K grant. Vote for 'I See You!' here: https://bit.ly/assistutah #SFNeighborhoodAssist

The voting period just started (or is halfway over, etc.). We are so close to winning a $25K grant, but we still need those votes! Vote for 'I See You!' here: https://bit.ly/assistutah #SFNeighborhoodAssist

Instagram:

• Tag @statefarm in your photos so State Farm can engage with your Instagram account.

• Include the hashtag #SFNeighborhoodAssist to make it easier for people to find your Instagram.

• Update your bio to include the unique URL and a bit about this cause because URL links are not clickable in Instagram posts.

• Include the title of our cause so supporters can easily search for it: 'I See You!'.

• Use Stories to create variety and more engaging content. Include key information in your posts such as the grant total amount ($25,000), why you think people should vote for this project, what the grant money will go toward (suicide prevention) and that people can vote up to 10 times per day from April 27 through May 6.

• Encourage your friends and family to share this cause information through their Instagram accounts.

• Share State Farm Neighborhood Assist® posts from the State Farm Instagram page (@statefarm) to your account.

Sample Post:

Vote for us, and [Insert cause title] could win one of 100 $25K grants from State Farm Neighborhood Assist® . Vote here for our cause: https://bit.ly/assistutah #SFNeighborhoodAssist Think of all the great work we could do if we won a $25K grant from State Farm Neighborhood Assist® . Vote for 'I See You!' at the link in my bio! #SFNeighborhoodAssist

Twitter:

• Include @StateFarm and #SFNeighborhoodAssist so State Farm can engage with your Twitter account and make it easier for people to find your tweet.

• Include the title of our cause 'I See You!' and the unique URL to link directly to our cause so supporters can easily vote.

• Include the title 'I See You!' and a photo of our cause when you are inviting people to vote. Include key information in your tweets such as the grant total amount ($25,000), why you think people should care about suicide prevention, what the grant money will go toward (suicide prevention programs) and that people can vote up to 10 times per day from April 27 through May 6.

• Change up what you tweet about because every detail won’t fit in a single tweet.

• Tweet regularly to stay top of mind

• Interact with anyone who votes for our cause to thank them and keep them engaged.

• Tweet information about this important cause to local media outlets to help garner additional awareness. Tell them why you think it is important that we work together to get the grant. Twitter handles @ksl, @kutv2, @abc4, etc.

• Encourage your friends and family to share this important cause information through their Twitter accounts.

• Retweet State Farm Neighborhood Assist® posts

• Retweet State Farm Neighborhood Assist® posts from the State Farm Twitter page (@statefarm) to your account.

Sample Tweet:

Let’s make an impact in our neighborhood. Help us make it happen with a $25K grant from #SFNeighborhoodAssist. Vote for 'I See You' here: https://bit.ly/assistutah

We are trying to earn one of 100 $25K #SFNeighborhoodAssist grants for our area! Help us by voting for 'I See You!' at https://bit.ly/assistutah

Email/e-newsletter:

The following can be used as an email or copied and pasted into an e-newsletter to inform friends, family, employees, volunteers, organizations and community members about this important cause.

Tip: Bold key dates and times to make sure they stand out.

Template:

TO: Target Internal and External Audiences

FROM: First, Last Name, [Organization/Affiliation if applicable]

SUBJECT: Please Help the Discovery Family Coalition bring $25K to Our Community! 'I See You' is one of the top 200 finalists in the State Farm Neighborhood Assist® grant program. This year, 100 winning causes will be chosen, giving us a GREAT chance to win a $25K grant. We need you to rally behind our cause and cast your votes to help us!

Here's how:

• Click https://bit.ly/assistutah and vote for 'I See You'.

• Voting is open from 12:00:00 A.M. ET on April 27 until May 6 at 11:59:59 P.M. ET and you can vote up to 10 times per day, every day for our cause.

• Winners will be announced June 7.

Please forward this to your colleagues, friends and family to vote and help spread the word.

Thanks in advance for your support,

[Personal Signature]

Unique URL Code: https://www.neighborhoodassist.com/entry/2043747 or https://bit.ly/assistutah

Please help us spread the word!

Immediate Release

Stepping Into Summer

My Discovery Destination! and the Discovery Family Coalition kick off the Summer Passport Program 2022

Hold on to your sun hats and flip flops–May 28 kicks off the Summer Passport Program for 2022.

The Summer Passport Program not only gets families to spend time together, bond, and build resilience in children, it keeps bodies active and minds engaged, progressing on the path paved during the school year. This helps combat summer learning loss, also known as the “summer slide.” According to statistics, school-age children can lose two months of reading skills and more than two and a half months of math skills over the roughly 12-weeks between the end of one school year and the beginning of another. It takes teachers as much as six weeks to play catchup in the fall.

Regarding the Summer Passport Program, Sharilee Griffiths, program director, shares that, “There are well over 100 fun, flexible, FREE Adventures in the main hub that families can do on their own time. There are also mini-hubs for science, arts & crafts, reading and a special PreK hub. This summer each Adventure contains the TIPS section, designed to empower parents, as well as community engagement level ideas to help kids connect to their community. This is a key protective factor that helps kids achieve better outcomes in their teen years.”

Getting connected is easy. Download the Goosechase app and search for the code SUMMER2022. Participating in the Summer Passport Program is more than smart, easy protection–it’s also fun. It’s ‘game-ified prevention’ at it’s best.

Media Contact:

Sharilee Griffiths

Director, My Discovery Destination! and the Discovery Family Coalition

Phone: 435-770-0748

Email address: Sharilee@mydiscoverydestination.com