ReZoom

Region #8: Minneapolis, MN

Lakes Area Youth Service Bureau (YSB) provides guidance and support to families and youth from ages 10-18, offering community justice programs for first-time, low-level offenders. Everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes kids need help understanding what they did and how to make changes in their lives. This group works with them so that they take responsibility for their actions, make amends and get back on track. This group's success rate shows that 86 percent of the kids who complete their program never have a second offense. They also provide prevention programs for kids who aren't in trouble but may be struggling at home or at school.

Winning Regional Essay

"Lakes Area Youth Service Bureau's mission is "Ensure the Success of Youth." From its founding in 1976 by a group of concerned citizens, YSB has been a community-based and community-supported organization. Local city and county law enforcement, courts, schools, community groups and individuals are all involved in helping YSB ensure the success of youth and parents. Our service area includes Washington and Anoka County communities served by the Forest Lake school district and all communities in Chicago County."

"YSB is a tested and valued partner in bringing "A Better World" to all members of communities we serve through programs that help children and strengthen families."

"Our Community Justice program works with teen first-time, low-level offenders. Good kids sometimes make poor choices. We help them understand what they did, take responsibility for their actions, make amends to victims and/or the community and get back on track."

Success: "With help and direction, statistics show that 86 percent of youth completing our community justice program do not re-offend and never connect with the juvenile justice system. The Making Connections Mentor Program pairs caring adults with youth who request and need encouragement, support and guidance."

"Prevention activities are a critical part of what we do. Prevention programs provide opportunities for all community youth, not just kids in trouble. Activities also target good kids who aren't in trouble but may be struggling at home or at school. Prevention activities are safe, supervised and fun! We provide opportunities for leadership and self-esteem building. We put youth opinions, ideas and energy to work!"

"We Ensure the Success of Youth by Ensuring the Success of parents. YSB provides parents with support, skills and resources to help them communicate/work with their children. Parents who are struggling. Parents who are scared. Parents who don't know how to talk to or reach out to their teenagers. We help parents who've lost control over a youth who's truant or using chemicals and parents who don't know how to use discipline effectively."

"Counseling is available. Our staff counselor helps youth and parents in crisis or to weather specific circumstances."

Community Education: "YSB works diligently to provide the community with information on such topics as Chemical Abuse, Tobacco, Teen Depression, Truancy, Effective Discipline, Self-Esteem Issues, Risky Teen Behavior and Communicating with Teens."

"More information about staff, programs and resources is available at www.ysblakesarea.org. Many volunteer opportunities are available."

If They Won the $100,000 National Award ...

"Every dollar of the $100,000 award be used to its full value and impact. WE WILL IMMEDIATELY support and strengthen current programs."

"$10,000 of the award would be allocated to strengthen prevention programs for youth ages 10-15.
This immediate use will:

• insure that current prevention programs are fully funded for the remainder of this year
• allow staff to explore outreach opportunities we've only dreamed about
• provide fun, supportive, challenging and supervised activities where youth will make friends, learn new skills and stretch beyond issues that may be limiting them."
  

"WE WILL SIGNIFICANTLY increase program capacity."

"$40,000 of the award will be immediately invested in certificates of deposit.
A $10,000 grant would be allocated each fiscal year for 4 years. Grants will be used to:

• increase our capacity to serve youth by adding staff and volunteer resources
• respond to needs identified by parents and
  
• strengthen our presence in rural and under served parts of our service area.
• grow additional funds. This portion of the award may gain as much as $7,000 in interest while we are spending down the annual grants."
  

"WE WILL DRAMATICALLY impact efforts to assure that YSB remains a viable and essential resource for youth and families in years to come!"

"$50,000 of the award will be added to our Partners for the Future Permanent Fund managed by the St. Croix Valley Community Foundation in Hudson, WI.
Because YSB has been selected to benefit from a once-in-a lifetime initiative, $30,000 of the $50,000 will be matched dollar for dollar! The $50,000 would:

• Attain YSB's maximum dollar for dollar match!
• Result in a balance of $240,688 after 20 years AND provide payouts up to $10,000 annually in that same period!"
  

"ReZoom.com's A Better World National Award would not only significantly affect programs today and in the short term, it could likely be the greatest single influence in our financial future!"

"VOTERS INTERESTED IN HEARING HOW WE WILL USE THE AWARD TO IMPACT PEOPLE WE SERVE, READ THIS!

We've told you how we will steward the gift. Now we want to tell you how it will be used to impact lives. Focus on faces captured in photos on our tribute page. Imagine yourself in any one of these examples:

"As a teen, were you ever at loose ends? Did you ever feel lost in the crowd? Like you didn't fit in? Like you had to prove something to the other kids around you? Was it hard to make friends? Where did you go?"

"Kelly was facing tough issues at home. She needed a safe place to talk about it and friends who could help her work through her questions. Kelly found what she needed at Coffee Talk, a program where high school girls come together under the guidance of a caring adult mentor to talk about things affecting their lives."

"We will use the award to support prevention programs like Coffee Talk that provide opportunities for youth to gather, have fun and participate in a wide variety of structured and supervised activities. Last year:

• 438 children and youth participated in prevention activities
• 65% reported that they would have been home alone, unsupervised, home with siblings or hanging out with friends had they not participated our programs."
  

"As a teen, how were things at home? Did your parents always understand you? Did you always understand them? Could you talk to them about hard things? Did they encourage you to set goals, achieve goals, and celebrate goals? Did they say, "I love you?" Did you?"

"Sue and Joe Wilson were shocked to learn that their son Mark had been caught with alcohol. They didn't know what to say to him or to each other. Youth and family counseling stepped them through a traumatic and chaotic situation." Last year:

• 82 at-risk youth and their families were provided counseling and support.
• 110 additional families in our communities received parenting services.
• 81 percent of clients completing counseling reported a significant improvement in the problem they addressed in counseling."
  

"With support from the award, YSB will continue to provide parents with real tools to help them communicate, resolve differences, and build bridges to healthier relationships."

"As a teen, did you ever make a bad choice? What were you thinking? Who did it hurt? What did it cost? How did you feel about yourself? Was it ever resolved? 14-year-old Melissa was referred to YSB by local law enforcement because she stole money and jewelry from her best friend's mom. She did it because she was bored. She didn't think about consequences or the cost of what she did."

"After going through our programs, Melissa knows that losing her best friend, her reputation and her mother's trust were not worth the $40 in small change and costume jewelry she stole. A Choice and Consequences class, an offense cost analysis and an apology have her back on track with mom and the victim." Last year:

• 478 first-time and low-level youth offenders completed the Community Justice Program.
• 90 percent of youth who completed the program had no further involvement with the juvenile justice system six months after program completion."
  

"YSB will use the award to purchase updated classroom materials that will helps kids examine poor choices, understand the impact of their decisions, take responsibility for their actions and make amends to their victims and the greater community."

"We will use the $100,000 to make communities we serve ‘A Better World' by doing what we've been doing successfully for over thirty years: working with one child, one parent, one situation, and one day at a time."

Click here for a testimonial.