For children who are caught in the middle of a divorce, whose parents have lost custody or who are thinking about running away, sometimes the biggest thing they need is someone to talk to.
At the core of all of their programs and services, that is what Youth Connections provides.
“We not the teachers, we’re not the counselors, we’re not mom and dad. We are neutral, and don’t pass judgment, but we’re here and will guide the child to whatever services they need,” said Judy Olds, executive director of Youth Connections.
In helping at-risk youth and families in crisis, Youth Connections is a unique entity in Johnson County. The organization does not solicit clients to use their services; rather, the people who need Youth Connections come entirely by referrals from places such as the court system, schools, attorneys and the Indiana Department of Child Services.
The value in the agency is being a constant source of support to the varying needs that kids and parents have.
“They know they have some place here in Johnson County where they can go to,” said Jamie Perry, coordinator of Families of Transition, a Youth Connections program.
Youth Connections was founded in 1976, first as a shelter for at-risk children and teens then slowly transitioning to a multi-program organization entrusted with the well-being of youth in all areas of the community.
Services include working with parents on court-ordered custody evaluation, helping families navigate divorce through its Families in Transition program and providing mentoring to elementary, intermediate and middle school students.
“Over the past 42 years, the agency has really evolved. Many of the programs are the same name, but we feel like we’ve improved upon them,” Olds said.
The children’s visitation center provides a place for parents who have lost custody but are working to still be in their children’s lives to sit down, play video games or board games, and repair the damage that’s been done to their relationships.
“We help with those high-conflict cases — such as domestic abuse cases — so the kids continue to see their parents,” said Shana Gilbert, program coordinator for the Children’s Visitation Center. “We also give the court a clearer picture of what might be happening, instead of the ‘he said, she said’ of some of these divorces.”
Safe Place and Host Home focuses on youth homelessness and runaways. The focus is on prevention, so coordinator Dawn LaPlante tries to reach young people who are at risk of running away from home and help them find another solution to their problems.
“A lot of people don’t know what the Safe Place program is. They assume it’s only for kids who are in crisis or running away. But it’s for any youth who needs help, or just needs to talk,” Olds said.
Many of the programs Youth Connections offers serve young people ages 7 to 17; though Families in Transition is offered from ages 8 to 18.
“We’re kind of the only agency in the county that works in that demographic, as far as the programs we have,” Olds said. “Sometimes people think there are other organizations that work with this, but they work with older folks — late teens, early 20s. That can be misleading.”
The need for Youth Connections’ programs is ever-present. In 2017, the agency served 11,341 parents and children, including more than 7,300 youths.
In particular, the opioid crisis has threatened to overwhelm the organization’s programs, Olds said.
But in order to help meet that need, Youth Connections needs to increase its fundraising. Between grants, donations, fundraising, funds from the Indiana Youth Agency, the United Way of Johnson County and the United Way of Central Indiana, the organization brought in $348,860 last year.
The agency’s expenses for the same time were $392,822.
“We’re always in desperate need of funds. There are so many nonprofits out there doing wonderful work, but we’re all competing against the same dollar,” she said.
On June 6, Youth Connections will host its annual Breakfast of Champions, a major fundraiser that allows the organization to continue offering its programs to all families who need it. The breakfast will also help fund scholarships that Youth Connections can offer to help reduce the cost for low-income families who need their programs, Perry said.
“There’s never enough money to go around. We are so dependent upon others to keep this agency going,” Olds said.
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Breakfast of Champions
What: A fundraising breakfast for Youth Connections
When: 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. June 6
Where: Compass Park Community Center, 690 State St., Franklin
Keynote speaker: Shawn Harper, former NFL player and motivational speaker
Tickets: $65 for individual tickets
Information: youthconnections.org
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