E-books for elephants
Just when you thought all hope was lost for the youth of today, Animas High School senior Nathan Youssef changes all that.
Youssef, 17, son of local spine surgeon Dr. Jim Youssef and Melissa Youssef, recently penned his first e-book, a 125-page how-to manual entitled 101 Ways to Contribute.

After spending time volunteering at the Elephant Nature Park, a home for rescued elephants in Thailand, Nathan decided to turn his long-running blog on giving back into something more concrete.

In 101 Ways to Contribute, he writes of his Muslim-American heritage, “There’s not much of a Muslim community to be found in Durango, Colorado (where I live); and by ‘not much,’ I mean ‘none.’”

When volunteering at the Elephant preserve with Loop Abroad, Nathan said he discovered something about culture and community: one can always reach out and integrate oneself and others simply by helping.

The book offers “practical, helpful information for teens” who want to get involved but don’t know where to start. “I don’t think kids realize how much we can do,” says Nathan, who in addition to volunteering for numerous local environmental and political causes is also a member of the Purgatory Ski Team and the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Council. “We can impact political campaigns. We can get issues into the media. We can influence environmental policy. We can draw attention to causes that matter. And most importantly, we can give our time and energy and help our neighbors.”

Nathan goes on to say that while huge donations may get the attention, something as simple as writing a soldier or sitting down to chat with someone of a different religious background can make a difference. “These things breed tolerance and help strengthen communities. We have the power to do that, and I wanted other kids to benefit from what I’d researched and learned.”

Nathan’s book is available for free at www.101waystocontribute.com  but he is asking for a $2 donation for the Elephant Nature Park.

“This is a small way I can give to this great organization. I learned so much there about how service can overcome the boundaries of culture and unite people,” he said. “I think that’s the calling of my generation.”