Today we’d like to introduce you to StandUp for Kids.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
StandUp for Kids is a national non-profit organization dedicated to ending the cycle of youth homelessness in local communities. Since 1990, we have cared for homeless and at-risk youth by transitioning them from crisis to connection. We give our youth a sense of safety, hope, and belonging through housing support, mentoring, drop-in centers, and street outreach.
In Atlanta, we work to end the cycle of youth homelessness and its economic impact by providing support and resources to youth experiencing hardships beyond their control. We serve as a mobile service center to homeless youth living on the streets and serve as mentors to high school students experiencing homelessness or at risk for homelessness, with the goal of keeping them in school and off the streets.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Working with youth experiencing homelessness is never easy. It takes a dedicated volunteer base and committed community to allow our program to keep having the impact that it does on Atlanta’s young adults. As we continue our two-decade-long fight for individual, community and structural change, we know our strength comes from each of the volunteers who have joined our family.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
StandUp for Kids is known for its dedicated, consistent mobile support for youth experiencing homelessness in the Atlanta area. When we walk our downtown route each Monday night, we often hear our names called out in recognition. We are proud of the seventeen years that we have provided weekly street outreach, the way that our presence can spark hope in times of hopelessness and the resilience of our youth. It is always our consistency and grassroots model that sets us apart from other providers and we recognize the strength of our difference in building partnerships with other organizations.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Luck may have brought our dedicated volunteer base to our organization in the first place, but it was always the hard work of our staff members, community partners and volunteers that allowed for the success of our mission.
Contact Info:
- Email: zoew@standupforkids.org
- Website: https://www.standupforkids.org/atlanta
- Instagram: @sufkatlanta
- Facebook: @sufkatlanta
