A Year in the Eyes of TeenHelp

[Mel]

Article featured in Avatar - Volume 3, Issue 7 (January 2010).

A Year in the Eyes of TeenHelp
By Jessie (Asylum)

The now-infamous “TeenHelp data loss” of December 2008 seems like ancient history to many of us. And to countless TeenHelp users it is something they have only heard about, mentioned in passing or found hidden on the TeenHelp History page, lost among happier landmarks, like reaching 5,000 members and new systems opening. But rewriting a decade of scripts and rules, rebuilding years of lost resources, and reaching 100,000 posts (for not the first time) isn’t something that happens overnight.

A year later, some of our most notable milestones, like reaching 1,000,000 posts, have yet to be met again. January 5, 2010, will mark the one year anniversary of the rebirth of TeenHelp. But what has happened in the past year, besides business as usual? What does it take to rebuild a community as unique as ours?

The first order of business was replacing as much of what was lost as possible, and so the start of 2009 brought us the short-lived, yet significant, Working Groups. From articles to videos, Terms of Service, rules, and Staff Training Manuals, a few dozen of TeenHelp’s dedicated users lent their time and hands in rewriting lost data and resources.

Some minor, but notable, changes occurred within Staff this past year also. Talent Officers became the Talent Committee, officially becoming TeenHelp’s fourth committee, and Avatar expanded to include three new Editor positions, bringing the total to a record nine Avatar Editorial Staff.

Other changes and additions took place this year. 2009 saw the introduction of new forums, and the rebranding of others. Drugs and Alcohol became Substance Use, and Addictive Behaviours was added. Other new forums include Arts and Literature, Disabilities, Food and Recipes, Goals and Ambitions, and Pets. Forums that were renamed include Education and Careers (formerly Schools and Careers) and Peer Pressure and Bullying (formerly Bullying).

Weekly Facilitated Chat Room Discussions were introduced in late August, allowing members to gather in the Chat Room to share their thoughts, experiences, and advice with one another. And we wouldn’t want to forget that, as of December, users can now change their usernames once every six months! It can be confusing, but it’s fun and exciting for our names to change with us as we grow.

As we celebrate, we must remember that some things we had are lost forever. Memories of those who are no longer with us in life, and those who have moved on for (what we hope to be) greener pastures, are now just that—memories. Our posts, journals and blogs, and those of some of our greatest friends, have been lost with time. And although we breathe a collective sigh of relief over some of our posts being gone (not all of them were our best moments, yeah?) for everyone “pre-reset,” it is undeniable that we have lost something.

Today, things may actually be back to business as usual. HelpLINK and Live Help are up and running, the Article and Video sections no longer look bare, and in many ways we have advanced beyond where we were before. Above all, it is important to look back and recognize these changes as positive ones. But it’s important, also, to remember all of the time and effort it takes to sustain and advance our community, and to also appreciate how far we have come in just one year.

Happy Rebirthday, TeenHelp, and Happy New Year.