Avenues for Youth’s Post

With your support, Avenues partners with youth experiencing homelessness to achieve their dreams. We do that by providing emergency shelter, short-term housing, and wrap-around services to more than 300 young people every year. The future for young people who leave Avenues is very bright. Last year, 78% of the young people that we partnered with exited to stable housing. Read our newsletter to hear from two youth who have successfully moved out! Both lain and Dakiya stayed at Brooklyn Avenues while working on their goals for the future. Last fall, lain moved out after saving up enough money to put a down payment on their own home! lain says, "It has a beautiful view of the Minnesota river. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else." Dakiya has also found a home of her own. She describes having her own place, "It allows me to feel like I have a home, like I can be comfortable, not have to think about my next move. Like, my gosh, what's going to happen now? I can be I can be comfortable, like 100% comfortable in my own space." Read & subscribe to the newsletter & watch the interviews with youth at: https://conta.cc/4b7hl1P

Thanks to Enterprise Mobility for donating $12,500 to Avenues for Youth. This grant will help us to provide welcoming, safe, and supportive homes for the youth who stay with us. The mission of the Enterprise Mobility Foundation is to strengthen the communities where Enterprise Mobility team members live and work by actively supporting a range of charitable causes such as the environment, health and human services, education, military and disaster relief. The Foundation has contributed more than half a billion dollars to thousands of local nonprofits in the United States and made wide-reaching commitments — from global philanthropic initiatives to community focused projects. We are so grateful for Enterprise Mobility Foundation's commitment to helping youth find stability and achieve their dreams.

Join us TONIGHT at Utepils Brewing for a summer happy hour on Tuesday, July 23 from 5- 8 PM. A dollar from every pint you purchase will go towards supporting youth experiencing homelessness. Come out, have a drink, and connect with Avenues staff!

Thank you L'Oréal for your significant gift to Avenues for Youth. Your support allows us to provide welcoming, safe, and supportive homes for the youth who stay with us. With the generosity of our community, Avenues provides youth-appropriate intervention, and crucial resources ranging from nourishing meals to mental health support and one-one-one guidance with a trusted adult. We are making it possible for hundreds of youth to find stability in their lives as they work toward their goals in school, work, housing, and relationships. We are so grateful for your commitment to helping youth find stability and achieve their dreams.

Join us at Utepils Brewing for a summer happy hour on Tuesday, July 23 from 5- 8 PM. A dollar from every pint you purchase will go towards supporting youth experiencing homelessness. At Urban Growler Brewing Company, on the first Wednesday of each month between August and December, $1 from each pint of Sven Sundgaard’s Tornado Drill IPA™ will be donated to Avenues. Come out to either of these events (or both!), have a drink, connect with Avenues staff!

We're proud to partner with Prudential Financial! The Prudential Pride ERG is ever reliable to show up with much needed resources. During all of June, local Prudential team members collected much needed items for youth at Avenues. From toothpaste to towels and bodywash to underwear, Prudential provided! Avenues has been lucky to work with the Prudential team for over six years now, and can always count on them to show up for their community. A big thank you also goes to Pride leads, Colleen and Sarah for making the delivery to Avenues and bringing all the smiles!

Once a month, ConneQT hosts come together at Wildflyer Coffee to support one another. Every third meeting is a refresher or deep dive training. This month Lisa Borneman, DSW, facilitated a conversation about how to build authentic relationships with youth while maintaining important boundaries and managing the inherent power imbalance in hosting. We are so grateful for our ConneQT Community Network!

Youth at both houses recently fulfilled major educational milestones. Congratulations to the dedicated graduates on this incredible accomplishment! It's no small feat to graduate while experiencing housing instability! Thank you to the donors and staff who helped celebrate youth with a delicious cake, balloons, cards, and gifts. Access to educational support is a vital part of a young person's path out of homelessness. At Avenues, youth have options and can choose whichever path is the best fit for their future. Avenues partners with youth by providing the resources and support needed to accomplish their goals.

June was full of PRIDE as we celebrated LGBTQI+ youth. From fundraisers to festivals, community partners raised support for Avenues, including ConneQT, our host home program for LGBTQI+ youth. Thank you to every community partner and individual who volunteered, donated, and spread the word about Avenues' work. You can read more about our incredible partners on our blog at https://loom.ly/NXfOhN4 Collectively, we raised over $40,000 (and counting!) for Avenues' programs, exceeding our challenge match and doubling each of those gifts! Your support of Avenues helps sustain a space where all young people can be fully themselves and receive affirming resources and housing. Together, we're creating a safe and affirming community where all youth can thrive!