Just in Time for Foster Youth.
Dear Friends in San Diego,
I would like to extend an invitation for you to change the world, one youth at a time.
For 14 years, Just in Time for Foster Youth has been transforming the lives of young people who leave foster care without family support. I became involved six years ago when my wife, a CASA volunteer, began to realize there was little support for the youth she was helping when they aged out of foster care at age 18. It is important to us because we know that our own children would not be thriving had they not had a family as a safety net and a loving support system.
Our service model is simple: we mobilize the San Diego community to help young adults become confident, capable, and connected, just as a healthy family would. Without Just in Time, the price we all pay is high. 70% of inmates in our state penitentiary were once in foster care. There it costs 20 times more to house them ($200 a day) than to create a path to a self-sufficient, productive life as part of the Just in Time family ($10 a day).
Since I became aware of this issue, I have believed it makes a lot of sense for us to join together as a community to fill the gaps in knowledge, resources and experience that exist after foster care. I have also discovered that what makes Just in Time’s approach extraordinarily impactful is that we are uniquely focused to fill the biggest gap of all, consistent connections to caring adults, including volunteers like me from a variety of professional and personal backgrounds. In fact, that is the foundation of our most comprehensive service, Pathways to Financial Power.
Pathways includes an innovative one-day conference at the center of a 12-month-long journey in work readiness, financial stability and employment growth. Youth, staff, employers and volunteers connect in a relationship-centered partnership that is powerful in essential ways. Eager young people learn through access to the ‘real world’ experience of successful role models and their transformation is funded largely by philanthropic entrepreneurs and business leaders who receive a community strengthening return on their investment.
That is why I want to extend a personal invitation to you, whether you are a concerned community member or a business leader, to participate in Pathways to Financial Power as a sponsor, volunteer, employer or all three. I know from experience there is nothing more rewarding than partnering with a young person to make their dreams become a reality.
Sincerely,
David Archambault
Board Chair
Just in Time for Foster Youth
P.S. To get engaged with Pathways, or any other Just in Time services, reach out to Aimee Halfpenny at (619) 677-2120.
Pathways to Financial Power Conference
Double Tree Hotel Mission Valley
September 23, 2017
9:00 am – 2:00 pm
