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They're RIOTing out there

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By STEVE OTTO Steve Otto

sotto@tampatrib.com sotto@tampatrib.com

Published: July 1, 2009

I don't have to tell you this has been a grim year. It seems every day the news has focused on something gone wrong, whether it's corruption in government, lousy schools or an economy on life-support.

You read about road rage and growing rates of depression. Ask anyone and they will tell you we have become a little angrier, maybe a little meaner.

So you turn on the news and someone is saying more than 230 teenagers have spread out across Hillsborough County fully intent on creating a weeklong riot. Somehow you aren't surprised.

It's true. At last report they had formed over 40 teams and were all over the county.

The riot act

All right, you're probably ahead of me on this. These aren't hoodlums. This isn't one of the gangs you've heard about moving into the county. They don't have to snuff out someone to get accepted into a gang. They're not doing drugs, armed robbery or home invasions. Mostly they just pick up trash and paint houses.

Listen, especially to the details, of this crowd.

These middle- and high-schoolers signed up for a work camp at Van Dyke Methodist Church in Lutz. They spent their own money, $150, for a week of traveling the county doing small to medium projects and then returning to the church at night for some of that summer camp kumbaya stuff.

In this case, RIOT stands for "Reach Inside Out Tampa." I'm thinking they need a new acronym, but you can't argue with success.

Sherrie Leatherwood has coordinated the weeklong camp at Van Dyke for 12 years with her husband.

Something of value

"I think it's significant that these kids want to do something of value," she says. "I think the proof of that is that this year there was a waiting list to be a part of the program. But there is only so much room and so many adult volunteers."

For a week the teens are working on projects that come from agencies in the community such as Metropolitan Ministries, Seniors in Service and Meals on Wheels.

"Most of the work is basic," she says. "They paint houses, clear away debris. They do a few more skilled jobs if they have the adult supervisors with the expertise and the tools."

On this day the teens were scattered across the county. There was a team over at Acorn Trace. "We are working at some 35 homes for the elderly where the seniors are responsible for cleaning outside. We've found homes covered with fallen tree limbs and debris. The elderly routinely get fined. We are at least able to give them some temporary relief."

Another group was at Robles Park setting up barbecue grills and offering free hot dogs and food to some of the neighbors. I talked to Haven Talley, who is going to Steinbrenner High this fall. "Our group is just practicing random acts of kindness, picking up in neighborhoods, doing some painting. This is my second year, and I love being involved with the community."

They will be out the rest of the week, building sheds and visiting assisted living and nursing facilities. Those will be the visible signs of the program.

It's what you don't see - a sense of involvement and interaction with the community - that will make a bigger difference in the long run.

Keyword: Otto Graphs, for more of Steve Otto's musings.

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