YouthHope Foundation | PO Box 7803 Redlands, CA 92375 US

(909) 793-2345

(909) 793-2345

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    • Home
    • About Us
      • About Us
      • Supporters & Funders
      • YouthHope Founder
      • Awards
      • Board Members
      • Staff
      • Download our Brochure
      • Volunteer
    • Our Services
      • Our Services
      • Food & Clothing Closet
      • Education & Job Training
      • Medical & Counseling
      • Housing
    • Stories
      • 2023 Stories
      • Past Stories
    • Fundraising
      • Day in The Park
      • Hope for a Lifetime
      • Walk in Their Shoes
      • Order T-Shirts Here
      • Aude Runs
    • News
      • Our Newsletters
      • YouthHope in the News
      • YouthHope Videos
    • Contact Us
    • Donate
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Supporters & Funders
    • YouthHope Founder
    • Awards
    • Board Members
    • Staff
    • Download our Brochure
    • Volunteer
  • Our Services
    • Our Services
    • Food & Clothing Closet
    • Education & Job Training
    • Medical & Counseling
    • Housing
  • Stories
    • 2023 Stories
    • Past Stories
  • Fundraising
    • Day in The Park
    • Hope for a Lifetime
    • Walk in Their Shoes
    • Order T-Shirts Here
    • Aude Runs
  • News
    • Our Newsletters
    • YouthHope in the News
    • YouthHope Videos
  • Contact Us
  • Donate

YouthHope Foundation

YouthHope FoundationYouthHope FoundationYouthHope Foundation

Hope for the Future Starts Today

Hope for the Future Starts TodayHope for the Future Starts Today

2023 Stories

A Home For Me

  I’ve never had a home. Sure I’ve lived in houses before, but never a home. My whole life I’ve jumped from house to house, couch to couch, motel to motel. Never staying in one place long enough to meet the neighbors. 


I guess that’s what happens when you have an unstable parent who chooses drugs over their family.

As I got older, I took on many of the same characteristics. They say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree right?


I found myself in unsafe situations, moving drugs for cash. Its all I was taught and it was all I knew.

I found out about YouthHope through living on the streets. I started going for the free food. I knew I could get a hot meal from them 4 days a week. 


When Heidi learned about my situation, she told me that I needed a real job and stable housing.

She helped me right away and in the years that I have known her she has gotten me into every type of housing. Rehab, long term housing, a tent, back with my family, etc.


Nothing ever really stuck because I wasn't ready to make the necessary changes. 

This year that changed. I decided that I want to do better. I came in and told Heidi and she suggested that I sign up to get into the new hotel project in Redlands. I signed up and got accepted. I just moved in and I feel so good having a place to call home. My home. For the first time in a long time, I feel like I’m on the right path. Thank you YouthHope!

Keep Moving Forward

  

I’ve been surrounded by drug addicts my whole life. My mom was killed by her boyfriend when I was young and my dad has been on drugs my whole life which meant that I was in and out of foster care. The only people that come to our house are druggies. It’s all I have ever known.

 

I decided early on that I don’t want the same life as I was born into. When I turned 15, I found YouthHope through friends at school. YouthHope has been a safe place for me to get help. I don’t have much in my life because of the unstable family I grew up in, so YouthHope helped me get my ID, my birth certificate, get into counseling, and create a job resume. 


I went to school for as long as I could, but because of the drugs that were in my system when I was born, I struggle with a lot of mental illness and learning disabilities so I ended up dropping out before I could graduate.


After I dropped out, I turned 18 and had nowhere to go, I went to YouthHope looking for a place where I could live so I could start my life. 


Heidi helped me find a safe house where I could stay. I’ve been there a few months and it’s the perfect place for me in this time of my life. 


After I got settled in, I went to YouthHope and they helped me get a job which has helped me tremendously. 


Some days I get discouraged with how much further I should be in my life, but everyone at YouthHope is always there to remind me of how far I’ve come and how bright of a future I have.

Thank you YouthHope for always being there for me and for helping me become the best version of myself.

A Cry For Help

  

All I remember from my childhood is yelling and crying. From an early age, me and my dad would fight all the time. I would do something dumb, he would yell, I would yell, he would hit me, I would cry, and then I would run away down the street until we both calmed down. 


This was repeated over and over until I was 16 when he kicked me out for good. He said I was ungrateful and he was done. 


I tried moving to Vegas to stay with my cousins, but once I got there, I found out that they were nearly impossible to live with. They were mean and the job they promised wasn't even available. 

After 2 months, I had no choice but to move back to Redlands. I started living in my car until I could figure things out. 


I’ve been going to YouthHope since I was 14 and Heidi has been helping me anytime I needed it. 

When I moved back to live in my car, I came to YouthHope broken and tired. 

Heidi instantly started making phone calls and by the end of the day, she had found a foster home for me where I could move in and be safe.


I’ve been there for 6 months now and I’m so happy. I have a safe, stable place to live with people who respect me and where I can continue to grow and develop.


Without YouthHope, I would still be sleeping in my car. No one would have helped me and no one would of spent hours on the phone finding me a safe place to go. 


Thank you YouthHope for always wanting the best for me and fighting for me!


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