Participants in this year’s Youth Mentoring Program (YMP) celebrated their growth and achievement with a celebration held Aug. 18 at Manhattan’s New York Academy of Medicine. The program, which is administered by the 1199SEIU/Employer Child Care Fund, was started two decades ago to give teenagers summer jobs that also provide experience in the healthcare workplace. YMP participants are placed in jobs at the same institutions where their parents are employed. For part of the day they work alongside hospital or nursing home worker. The program also includes a module which gives students the opportunity to share their experiences through art and in group settings.