FALL 2021
New
HEIGHTS FAMILY VICTORIES FROM YOUTH VILLAGES
JAQ-CARI’S STORY
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
YOUTH VILLAGES HELPS FAMILY FIND STABILITY AND STRENGTH
• SPECIAL GIFT RECEIVED
• WALK FOR INDEPENDENCE RESULTS • CORPORATE SPONSOR INFORMATION
UPDATE
FROM YOUTH VILLAGES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR In 2006, Youth Villages was brought to Massachusetts and through hard work and an unwavering commitment to provide better outcomes for children and young adults, we’ve grown our programs exponentially. This year marks our 15th anniversary and our 250 employees served more than 1,800 kids last year. We are thrilled to celebrate 15 years of providing care in the Commonwealth and I am so pleased with how we’ve been able to grow our programs. Over the last year, we served 1,156 kids through our intensive in-home services and 704 young adults through LifeSet™. In March we launched the Intercept® for Emergency Diversion program to help alleviate long waits in emergency departments for mental health beds and have served 25 families in the southeast and central regions of Massachusetts. With your help and a matching gift from our generous local board, we raised $ 2.2 million to help more young people! We are excited about the possibility of hosting in-person events this year. We are planning our Spring Celebration as an in-person event and will celebrate 15 years of Youth Villages in Massachusetts! Save the date for May 5, 2022. We are monitoring CDC guidelines and will adjust our event plans accordingly if necessary. I am incredibly grateful for the impact you make on the lives of those we serve. Thank you for your commitment to our mission. If you would like to make a difference in the lives of children and young adults, you can make a gift today.
Massachusetts & New Hampshire Advisory Board Peter Campanella, Chair Amy Crate Amanda Eisel Ryan Hayden Joanna Jacobson Beth Klarman Sharon Liszanckie Kristen Lucken Pamela Giasson Lynch Yvette Lowenthal-Mulderry Mark O’Donnell Malisa Schuyler Wendy Vincent Pramila Yadav
STAY IN TOUCH twitter.com/youthvillages facebook.com/youthvillages instagram.com/youthvillages linkedin.com/company/ youth-villages youtube.com/youthvillages
Matt Stone EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MASSACHUSETTS & NEW HAMPSHIRE matthew.stone@youthvillages.org 781-937-7917
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BACK IN ACTION, JAQ-CARI’S STORY Jaq-cari is 12 years old and is in the Youth Villages Intercept program. When he was 10, he came home from school tired, lethargic and seemingly not himself. He slept for the entire day and his mom, Courtney, had a feeling something was wrong. She called an ambulance and Jaq-cari was rushed to a nearby hospital. He was near death and doctors diagnosed him with Type I diabetes. Because of his illness, Jaq-cari consistently missed a lot of school and fell behind. The family’s lack of reliable transportation also caused Jaq-cari to miss multiple medical appointments and he ended up back in the hospital. The Department of Children and Families (DCF) stepped in and referred Jaq-cari to Youth Villages to help address his truancy, missed medical appointments and additional mental health concerns. Jaq-cari’s Intercept specialist facilitated communication between Courtney, Jaq-cari’s school team, medical providers and DCF. She helped Courtney figure out which questions to ask Jaq-cari’s medical and mental health providers and even drove Courtney and Jaq-cari to appointments to ensure they wouldn’t be missed. Now, the family works with their specialist to check Jaq-cari’s sugar and give him his Jaq-cari continues on page 4
Jaq-cari and mom Courtney enjoy a day at the park after a session with their Intercept specialist.
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Jaq-cari continued insulin multiple times per day. They use an app to track his diet and blood sugar and his specialist created a wellness plan to help Courtney and Jaq-cari keep track of his medications and treatments. In addition to his severe diabetes, Jaq-cari also suffers from hallucinations and thoughts of self-harm. He was diagnosed with PTSD, depression and ADHD. Jaq-cari’s specialist works to help him connect and communicate with his various mental health providers and facilitates communication between Jaq-cari’s school team and his psychiatrist. His specialist also worked directly with his school therapist to address barriers around attending school remotely and worked with Courtney to set up a referral for a long-term individual therapist that Jaq-cari can work with year-round. She also utilizes creative interventions such as art therapy to work with Jaq-cari around his PTSD and depression and helps Courtney with her resume and required housing documentation as she searches for a job and a more suitable living situation for her family. Now, Jaq-cari’s diabetes is mostly under control and is much more manageable for both Jaq-cari and Courtney. He does a great job of being mindful of what he eats and is working to replace sugary drinks with water. Jaq-cari is enrolled in hip-hop dance classes and is doing much better in school, he is even excelling in math, science and English language arts.
WALK FOR INDEPENDENCE RAISES $33,500 The Walk for Independence, in partnership with the Youth Villages Leadership Council, had 175 walkers and 26 teams join us as we virtually walked 5,411 miles across America to raise awareness for former foster youth transitioning into adulthood.
Congratulations to our Top Teams! Furthest Distance Walked 1st Place: Red Hot Chili Steppers 2nd Place: Shake Rattle and Stroll 3rd Place: STEPtember2021 Most Dollars Raised 1 Place: Running through the 6 st
With the mental health crisis on the rise, young people need our help now more than ever before. Every step taken during the Walk for Independence helped former foster youth reach their dreams! Demand for our services has increased more than 35% over the last year and your generous support will help us meet this increasing need and provide more young adults with access to LifeSet.
This year, Youth Villages will help more than 500 children across Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Many of them need someone to become their Holiday Hero. Questions? Contact Sarah Reilly at 781-937-7905 or sarah.reilly@youthvillages.org
youthvillages.org/holidayheroes 4
The Bridgespan Group held a toy drive to support Holiday Heroes.
CALLING ALL CORPORATE PARTNERS GET YOUR COMPANY INVOLVED
Corporate partners are essential to the success of our programs at Youth Villages, and we are proud to work with community leaders to help children, families and young adults live successfully. There are several ways your company or organization can partner with Youth Villages from sponsoring an event to hosting a day of service. You can harness the power of your corporate community and help make the holidays happy for those in our programs by providing holiday gifts and winter essentials through Holiday Heroes. Bring happiness and joy to young people in need and help give them the holiday season they deserve! Last year, over 550 young people received gifts from our Holiday Heroes and this year even more children and young adults need your support. Become a Holiday Hero and help make the season brighter for those who need it most. For more information on how to get your company involved, please contact Sarah Reilly at sarah.reilly@youthvillages.org.
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Bob Gendron, CEO, CREF
More than 800 young adults age out of foster care in Massachusetts each year, and thanks to a generous donation from CREF, a leading healthcare asset management firm headquartered in Boston, MA, more of these young adults will have access to the life-changing services of LifeSet. The $50,000 gift was directed towards the Spring Challenge, an annual campaign to raise $1 million to support the LifeSet program. LifeSet is the bridge from foster care to successful adulthood and helps young adults achieve independence. This population struggles to find work, meet the demands of school, secure suitable housing and properly address their mental health. LifeSet specialists work directly with these young adults to help them achieve their goals and live successfully. Bob Gendron, former director of the Youth Villages Board of Massachusetts and New Hampshire and current founder and CEO of CREF, is a longtime supporter of Youth Villages and our mission to help young people and families.
YOUTH VILLAGES RECEIVES $50,000 FROM LOCAL ASSET MANAGEMENT FIRM, CREF
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“Youth Villages does incredible work,” said Bob. “Their commitment to ensure the safety and success of kids, families and young adults is near and dear to my heart and is something I strive to achieve in my own business as well. Their mission aligns with my core belief that safety is of the utmost importance and we should do everything we can to make sure everyone, regardless of whether they are at home, out in the community, or in a hospital, is as safe as possible.” Within the last year, Youth Villages has seen over a 35% increase in the demand for services and as the mental health crisis continues to grow, we are serving more young people than ever before. The generosity of philanthropic partners like CREF makes it possible for us to meet this increasing need. “I am so impressed with how the philanthropic community has stepped up to support Youth Villages, especially over the last year,” said Matt Stone, executive director of Youth Villages of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. “We are so grateful for corporate partners like Bob Gendron and CREF. Gifts like those we receive from CREF allow us to serve more young people and help us provide better outcomes for kids and young adults.”
MASSACHUSETTS & NEW HAMPSHIRE DONORS JAN. 1 THROUGH JULY 31, 2021
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING YOUTH VILLAGES. THE FOLLOWING DONORS MADE GIFTS TO YOUTH VILLAGES BETWEEN JAN. 1 AND JULY 31, 2021. WE GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGE THESE THOUGHTFUL CONTRIBUTIONS.* Janice and Ralph James PwC Helen Chin Schlichte Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Schmid Caron and Kevin Tabb
BUILDER
1,000 to $4,999
$
INNOVATOR
LEADER
Anita and Josh Bekenstein
Anonymous Michelle and Bob Atchinson Monica and Peter Campanella Barbara and Michael Eisenson Linda and Michael Frieze Lisa and Michael Josephson Jessica and Josh Lutzker The Mannion Family The Purcell Family Charitable Fund Jill and Michael Stansky Jen and Seth Stier
100,000
$
+
VISIONARY
50,000 to $99,999
$
Anonymous CREF Cummings Foundation Barbara and Amos Hostetter Stephanie and Brian Spector Strategic Grant Partners
10,000 to $24,999
$
PILLAR
PROTECTOR
Amy and David Abrams Kristin and Paul Marcus
Carrie & Timothy Burr Cogan Family Foundation
25,000 to 49,000
$
$
Anonymous Convertiv Mr. Jack Eiferman and Ms. Fern Fisher Linda and Michael Frieze Sarah Hancock Rekha Madan Hayden and Ryan Hayden Ms. Barbara Heffernan Jason Hayes Foundation Pamela and Tom Lynch MathWorks Jenna and Mark O’Donnell Parker Family Fund Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group Siena Engineering Group Emily and Michael Speicher Jenny Mak and Robert Swartz Wendy and Andy Vincent The Youth Villages Leadership Council
HONORARIUM In honor of Peter Campanella The Parker Family Fund
5,000 to $9,999
$
*If you made a contribution during this time (above $1,000) but it is not listed, please call 781-937-7900.
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YOUTH VILLAGES
NONPROFIT ORG
12 Gill Street, Suite 5800 Woburn, MA 01801
U.S. POSTAGE PERMIT 1324
(Address Service Requested)
YOUTH VILLAGES
Youth Villages is a private nonprofit that serves more than 32,000 children and their families each year from offices in the following cities: Alabama: Auburn, Birmingham, Mobile Arkansas: Jonesboro, Searcy, West Memphis Florida: Lakeland Georgia: Atlanta, Douglasville Indiana: Bloomington, Columbus, Evansville, Indianapolis, Jasper, Jeffersonville, Madison Louisiana: Metairie Kentucky: Lexington, Louisville Massachusetts: Boston, Marlborough, West Springfield, Raynham, Woburn Mississippi: Biloxi, Greenwood, Hattiesburg, Hernando, Jackson, Meridian, Tupelo New Hampshire: Manchester North Carolina: Asheville, Boone, Charlotte, Fayetteville, Greensboro, Greenville, Louisburg, Raleigh-Durham, Waynesville, Wilmington Ohio: Worthington Oklahoma: Oklahoma City, Tulsa Oregon: Bend, Portland, Salem Tennessee: Chattanooga, Clarksville, Columbia, Cookeville, Dickson, Dyersburg, Jackson, Johnson City, Knoxville, Memphis, Morristown, Nashville, Paris Washington, D.C. New Heights is published by Youth Villages Prefer not to receive a printed newsletter? Email cynthia.vanelli@youthvillages.org or call 901-251-5000. To also receive a digital copy of our newsletters and join our email list, sign up at youthvillages.org/stay-informed.