In an early iteration of Two Birds, a team of One Stone summer interns put their genius creative skills to work in producing a video highlighting a project near and dear to their hearts, the P16 Caldwell Education Project. One Stone first engaged with the program through Reach, a project serving at risk teens in Caldwell.

The Caldwell Freshman Academy, a school for at-risk freshman transitioning into high school, was a key player in the P16 strategy. With this understanding, One Stone developed “Reach,” a project designed to challenge Academy students to reach for high goals and expectations—attending postsecondary education, serving others and building community.

The experience of being a young kid in an active duty military family brings some challenges. One of those is connecting, in fun ways, to other kids and families who share this same experience. At One Stone, we know a thing or two about fun, so with guidance from family counselors and experts at the Idaho National Guard and Operation: Military Kids at the University of Idaho, Team One Stone created the “Day of Knights & Princesses” event.

Think 4-Ward was a One Stone challenge to raise awareness and educate the community about resource consumption and conservation in the Treasure Valley. One Stone partnered with Idaho Power, Boise Watershed and the City of Boise to create a four-week community challenge that encouraged people to take measures to save resources in their own homes. The four focus areas of conservation – the Elements, included electricity (fire), recycling (earth), pollution (air), and water.

Small pieces…big pictures was the theme for Break Through 2012, One Stone’s alternative spring break project. The event was held in Marsing, Idaho, population 1,031.  Much of the two-day project was focused on turning tragedy into change, as this small town was still reeling from the loss of Taylor Sauer, a Marsing High School graduate who was killed while texting and driving. At the time of her death, Taylor was in college studying to be a teacher. As a memorial to her, the town had envisioned an outdoor classroom at Marsing Elementary School.

How do you get a roomful of 2nd grade students to fall in love with reading? Make it LEAP off the page! LEAP was a project designed to inspire a love of reading by making the story come to life. One Stone team members channeled their inner thespians to act out Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox. The book was selected through guidance from an elementary school teacher on age-appropriate reading, and the skit was developed with coaching from a local professional actor.

One Stone had an interest in learning more about the foster care system and how we could support foster care families. Through conversations with experts in the field, we learned that a challenge in working with foster care families was confidentiality. Based on this, we sought out opportunities to engage with these families organically, in a way that our recipient was most comfortable. After building relationships with service providers and the Health and Welfare community, we came upon the perfect opportunity. One Stone was invited to provide games, activities and fun at a picnic for Treasure Valley foster care families, that would serve as a connectivity point for foster care families.

How might we provide a meaningful experience that gives One Stone team members a chance to learn more and connect with children on the autism spectrum?

Connect was a project deeply rooted in empathy work. One Stone team members sought to understand the way children with autism, and their parents, experience the world. With excellent guidance from the Idaho Center for Autism and the Autism Society of the Treasure Valley, we learned how we could create an event that would be meaningful for these kids, their parents and One Stone team members: a SUPER play date.