By Emily Garland

Teens helping teens. That’s what Make the Dash Count is all about.

The vision of the Gig Harbor-based nonprofit is to “create an army of youth philanthropists who will serve as community leaders throughout their lives.”

That army is just getting started in Renton.

Founded just last spring, the Renton Make The Dash Count recently awarded $15,000 to three local organizations that serve youth in Renton.

Those organizations are a soccer and writing after-school program, a golf program and The Hall at Harambee, an after-school program that focuses on academics, athletics and the arts.

Harambee is in Renton and the other two programs are in Seattle. All organizations serve Renton youth.

Renton Make the Dash Count held its first meeting in September. The board is made up of 11 area high school students and an adult adviser.

Steve Sholdra, a Renton homeschooled freshman in high school, is chairperson of the Renton nonprofit. There are other Make the Dash Count chapters in Prosser, Seattle, Tacoma and Massachusetts.

“The vision of the Make the DASH Count Foundation is teens helping teens by funding programs to better the lives of even more teens,” Sholdra says. “So it’s teens helping teens helping teens.”

Getting the money wasn’t hard. The two men who launched IKEA in Renton — Anders Berglund and Bjorn Bayley — gave the Renton group $300,000 to run the group for 10 years. Of that money, $100,000 is to help the group

learn how to manage itself. The remaining money is for grants. Renton Make The Dash Count has $20,000 to give away each year.

Giving away that money was harder than the board expected.

The teens had to research nonprofits, then meet with city staff members and City Council members. Next was soliciting grants, reviewing the applications and conducting site visits. And, finally, choosing the organizations that would have the greatest impact on youth in Renton.

“Part of the challenge was finding organizations in Renton to apply,” says Stacey Guadnola, adult adviser for Renton Make the Dash Count. “All the organizations do a nice job, they all do really nice work, but it’s mostly in Seattle.”

Sholdra and his fellow board members received nine grant applications.

Selecting the winners was tough, Sholdra says, but he says he’s happy with the board’s decision.

“Our board is very proud of the impact we are making on our community by awarding the grants to these three organizations,” he wrote in an e-mail.

Guadnola is equally proud. She may be the Renton group’s adviser, but the group is entirely student-run, she says.

“I’m just really impressed with these young people,” she says. “I think they did a nice job. Having worked with many other groups I’m quite impressed with this group and their dedication.”

Guadnola is the founding executive director for Make the Dash. She has managed all five youth boards and founded the first youth board in Tacoma.

Berglund’s son served on that first youth board, and the organization’s success is what spurred the former IKEA businessman to fund Renton Make the Dash Count.

More Information:

Renton Make the Dash Count is a youth-run nonprofit that awards grants each year to local organizations that benefit Renton youth. The dash in the term Make the Dash Count refers to the horizontal line on a gravestone. The dash between the dates the person was born and died. That dash represents life. Make it count.

For more information about Renton Make the Dash Count, visit www.makethedashcount.com/Renton.html or contact chairperson Steve Sholdra at sholdras@yahoo.com.

This year’s Renton Make the Dash Count grant recipients are:

• America SCORES Seattle, $6,000. America SCORES Seattle is an an after-school program combining soccer and writing. This year the program is serving 192 children in six of Seattle’s highest need elementary schools. The students will participate in 23 weeks of soccer, poetry and community service. For more information, visit www.americascores.org/#/Seattle or call 206-988-0111.

• The Hall at Harambee, $5,000. The Hall is a free, after-school drop-in program focusing on academics, athletics and the arts for youth. The Hall is open from 2 p.m.-5 p.m., Monday to Friday. Harambee is a church and a community center with an all-ages concert venue and a homeless resource center. Harambee is at 316 S. Third St. For more information, visit vivaharambee.com or call 425-271-6700.

• The First Tee of Greater Seattle, $4,000. The First Tee is a Seattle-based program that teaches life skills through golf. The Make the Dash grant will help provide scholarships to allow local youth to join the new First Tee program at Riverbend Golf Complex in Kent. For more information, visit www.thefirstteeseattle.org or call 206-624-1301.