FFY 2018-2019 Program Report FINALsm

2018-2019

Program Report

Our Vision and Mission

Friends for Youth’s mission is to positively impact the health and well-being of
disadvantaged youth through early intervention and prevention.  

Through the power of mentoring, youth will be more emotionally secure,
academically engaged, and have their lives forever changed for the better. 

The Continued Growth and Evolution of Friends for Youth

In 2017, Friends for Youth (FFY) began a period of transition with the departure of their long-time
CEO.  At that time, Karen Wilmer,  FFY's COO, was asked to assume the role of Chief Executive
Officer for Friends for Youth, as an agent of change during this critical transition period.  Karen led
the organization into a growth and expansion mode with the long term sustainability of FFY as her
primary goal.  Karen and her team have deepened the agency's involvement in the communities
we serve culminating in an innovative Whole Health for Youth partnership collaborative. 
Comprised of five multi-faceted youth- and family-serving organizations, the partners work
together to enhance access to resources for youth and their families in the most disenfranchised
communities of Redwood City.   Friends for Youth is on a very positive path and poised for even
greater expansion of both our 1-to-1 and school-based group mentoring programs.

The next step in our growth was identifying the long-term, future leader for Friends for Youth.  We
sought an experienced leader with youth development expertise, who was embedded in our
community, and had passion for our mission. We looked for creativity, the courage to innovate,
and the ability to inspire.

We are excited to say we have found that person!   Laurie Karzen, LCSW, CSD is a seasoned
bilingual Spanish-speaking mental health professional and licensed clinical social worker,
with deep experience in youth program oversight and management.   Laurie is indeed mission-
driven, having referred youth to Friends for Youth for over 20 years.  She brings a new and creative
perspective to Friends for Youth that is well-founded in knowledge related to how best to serve
local youth and families. Laurie is a long-time Redwood City resident, well established in the
community, and has worked with challenged youth at several schools including Sequoia High
School and most recently Redwood High School in Redwood City.  

Karen and Laurie have worked together over the past several months ensuring a smooth
transition.   Karen is now moving to the Board of Directors so will remain close to FFY.  We
are excited about our future and our ability to serve many more youth most in need in our
communities.

The Power of Mentoring

The youth we serve are often identified as "at-risk", meaning these children are vulnerable to
harmful behaviors and academic disengagement.  However, through our caring volunteer
mentors, we replace the term “at-risk” with “at-promise”, for that is what these youth represent
—the promise of brighter futures, improved outcomes, raised expectations, and productive lives
that beat the odds.   Such is the power of human relationships.

How Mentors
Help Youth

Mentors provide friendship and support.  Over
time trust develops and youth take guidance from
their mentor.  Mentors are not a parent or tutor,
but rather a trusted friend and advisor.

100%  of youth stay in school while
  91%  in the 1-to-1 program
  84%  avoid drugs/alcohol
  88% 
avoid legal involvement
spoke to an adult about
college and/or their future

You Can Be a Mentor!

Caring and Commitment.

Mentors are adult volunteers from throughout the community.  They are college students,
retired professionals, and everything in between.  Many mentors had someone in their life who
helped guide them, and so they want to give back and help make a difference to a young person
who needs support.   The primary qualifications are caring and commitment.  All mentors are
extensively screened and trained as youth safety is our #1 priority. 

Many Ways You Can Get Involved

You can be a  donor, potential 1-to-1 or school-based mentor, event volunteer, board member,
community partner, or advocate!  Through all of these opportunities, you can positively
impact the life of a child through the power of mentoring.

1-to-1
Mentoring

Making a difference -
one child at a time.

Friends for Youth provides adult mentoring and
enrichment activities for at-risk youth ages 8-17 living
in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties.
Through the trusted relationship of a 1-to-1 mentor,
our youth - many for the first time - find an adult they
can talk to and trust. 
The constant, enduring presence of a caring adult can
be the difference between staying in school or
dropping out, making healthy decisions or engaging in
risky behaviors, and realizing one's potential or failing
to achieve one's dreams.

How You Can Become a Mentor

1.    Attend a 30 minute Information Session to learn all about
the programs.
2.    Interested?   Fill out an application, schedule an in-home
visit, submit background materials.
3.    Approved!  Attend a full day of training.
4.    Match recommendation based on a careful assessment of
the needs of the mentee and mentor preferences.
5.    Matched!  Meet once a week for 12 months with ongoing
agency support.
6.    Participate in numerous activities provided by Friends for
Youth and community partners.
7.    Attend quarterly Mentor Mixers with fellow mentors.
8.    Form a friendship with your mentee that can last a
lifetime!

School-based
Mentoring

The transition from middle school to high
school is difficult even for the best of students. 
Youth facing adversity and struggling with
grades have a higher probability of academic
disengagement and potentially dropping out.   
The Friends for Youth school-based program
supports youth in the 7th-10th grades
including McKinley Institute of Technology,
Hoover Middle School, and Kennedy Middle
School helping prepare them to transition to
high school.  The program continues at Sequoia
High School in the 9th and 10th grades with
mentors who provide support and
encouragement.  In addition to school-based
weekly sessions, Friends for Youth and our
partner agencies provide field trips, workshops
and guest speakers.

It's all about relationships!

Mentors and peer mentors meet with small "I cannot overstate enough how much
groups of students on campus once a week for an Friends for Youth's mentors open up
hour under the guidance of the Friends for Youth doors to opportunities in the world.
staff.   Many...teens have never had a mentor
Topics are introduced and mentors are given an in their life and they need that."
array of resources to engage the youth in their
group.  But it comes down to building the -Sequoia High School Social Worker
relationship and talking about everyday
challenges, setting healthy goals, problem It really helped my grades!
solving, communication, resiliency, and being It was so great to have someone to talk to.
engaged in school. I liked having someone who checked my
Mentors help youth navigate the difficult grades. I started doing homework more.
transition from middle school to high school by I learned about life and making better
supporting positive behaviors and academic choices.
engagement, and being a friend they can trust
and count on.

 Photo Gallery 02
What do you
1-to-1 Mentoring
want to get
01 out of your
Maram and mentoring
program?
Patricia
celebrating 3

months of
f riendship.

03 04
Mentees and  Bowl-A-Thon

mentors Night of fun
attend life and friendship

skills
workshops

together.

School-based Mentoring

8th Graders and their mentors with an end of year celebration!

We Impact Our
Community

Serving Local Youth In Need

Friends for Youth  provides mentoring services to boys and
girls age 8-17 of diverse ethnicities who live in the local Silicon
Valley communities of San Mateo County and northern Santa
Clara County.  Youth are referred to our program by schools
and youth-serving professionals as they are facing severe
adversity and are at-risk of life-skills or academic failure. 
Their parents struggle to provide the support they need.

Youth most often live in single-parent or guardian homes with
many challenges.  Poverty is a universal factor as families
struggle to live in this local community where $115,000 is
considered "low income".   Most of our youth live in families
with income under $40,000.

Through the guidance and support of a caring mentor, youth Measuring Our
can avoid risky behaviors such as getting into fights, using Impact
drugs and alcohol, bullying, and abuse.   They can succeed
academically.  We have many stories of first-generation
college graduates.

Friends for Youth has been using a statistically-
relevant Outcome Evaluation model since 2000
to validate the impact of our program.  

We also utilize Process Evaluations to assure
program integrity is maintained, and we solicit
Qualitative Evaluations from mentors, mentees,
parents, and school personnel for verbal feedback
on program participation and perceived impact.

Goal of Self-Sufficiency Cost to keep one youth in the 
Juvenile Justice System for one year:  
Our goal is to help youth succeed and find a path to
future productivity and self-sufficiency.  The activities $ 246,201
we and our community partners provide are meant to
expose youth to new experiences and opportunities to Cost to provide a 1-to-1 mentor 
motivate and inspire.   for a youth for the entire year:  

$     2,340

The Wellness Partnership
Initiative

Youth Serving Partners Partner Schools

A True A Focus on 
Collaborative Effort Mental Health

Friends for Youth's new Whole Health for Youth Half of all mental illness
Initiative is a collaborative network of community- begins by age 14
based partners focused on prevention and
intervention. The foundation of the program is Often starts with anxiety,
Friends for Youth's 1-to-1 and school-based group depression and behavior
mentoring services.  disorders

Friends for Youth's mentoring services will dovetail Only 20% get needed
with the strengths of the individual partners treatment
Redwood City PAL and Siena Youth Center who have
large, well-located facilities that are easily accessible 70% of local youth report
to the mid-Peninsula community.  Both host after- depressions, nervousness
school activities, transportation, leadership, and or stress
enrichment programs that can be critical to keeping
youth engaged.   31% of Latinos report
significant depression

Whole Health for Youth
Service Partners

Whole Health for Youth is rooted in collaboration and its purpose is to bring community resources
and assets together to better address youth mental health in Redwood City and surrounding
communities. 
Parent education is a key component of the Whole Health for Youth program. The parents of these
students will have access to mental health education, parenting training and support services through
the programs offered by Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center (PCRC) and StarVista.
Redwood City-based Star Vista will provide mental health services and crisis prevention. Star Vista
will screen and guide students in need to resources addressing more significant mental health issues.
Star Vista will also provide mental health and suicide and drug prevention training to mentors,
parents, and staff working directly with students.   PCRC will provide training to staff, mentors and
parents with the objective of improving family engagement, creating a safe environment, dealing with
challenges faced by youth and their families.
 

With Gratitude!

The Sand Hill Foundation is supporting the Friends
for Youth Wellness Partnership as part of their
initiative to improve the coordination and
accessibility of prevention and early intervention
of mental illness efforts among local organizations
for young people and their families.

The partnership will continually seek to add services and partners in addition to the above.

With Appreciation to
our Major Supporters

Hurlbut-Johnson
Charitable Family

Foundation

A Silicon Valley Community
Foundation Donor-Advised Fund

Saw Island
Foundation

The Foss Family
Foundation

Sadie Meyer and Goodwin Family Memorial Trust
Louis Cohn
Foundation

FY2018-2019 Financials

REVENUE FY18-19 Revenue

Individual Donations $  110,798 17,36,05062 110,798
Foundation and Corporate Grants $  436,556 81,521
Fundraising Events   $     81,521
Municipalities $     17,600
Clubs/Misc/Interest/Dividends $      3,562

TOTAL REVENUE $ 650,037

EXPENSES $    123,907
$   438,710 
Fundraising and Administrative
436,556
Mentoring Services
Recruitment, screening training, Individual Donations (17.04%)
matches, case management group Fndn. and Corp. Grants (67.16%) Events (12.54%)
activities, evaluation, program
support for 1-to-1 and school- Municipalities (2.71%) Clubs/Misc. (0.55%)
based mentoring; Whole Health for
Youth Initiative and Partnership

TOTAL EXPENSES $    562,617

NET INCOME  $  87,420

(Preliminary - unaudited financials at time of printing.)

Board of Directors

Mark Johnson, Chair, TFH Publications, Inc., Ret.
Jim Prior, Vice Chair, Architectural Lighting Works
Karen Wilmer, Secretary, Friends for Youth, Ret.
Joe Pert, Treasurer, Basic American Foods, Ret.
Connie Maurer, VP Communications, Honeywell, Ret.
Kristin Hanley, Spencer Stuart
Philip Lam, NEX Team, Inc.
Kevin Mason, Altamont Capital Partners
Paola Najera, Chevron
Karen Woodell, San Francisco PTL
Kevin Yao, Salesforce

Advisory Board

Dr. Michael Alessandri, University of Miami
James Blackman, Attorney-at-Law
Dani Gasparini, GB Consulting, former Redwood City Mayor
Josh Edelman, SEED Foundation
Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, 14th Congressional District
Danny Grossman, Jewish Community Federation
Bill Halter, Stanford University, Board of Trustees Emeritus
Judy Heyboer, Human Resources Consultant
Dr. Donald Kennedy, Stanford University
Tom Nolan, Project Open Hand
Robert Quist, Financial Consultant
James A. Thompson, Attorney-at-Law

Friends for Youth Staff

Laurie Karzen, Executive Director - [email protected]
Sarah Norman, Community Partnerships Director - [email protected]
Marcela Rodriguez, 1-to-1 Program Coordinator - [email protected]
Kiki Canny, School-Based Program/Recruitment  Coordinator - [email protected]
Jasmine Cardenas, School-Based Associate Program Coordinator - [email protected]
 

1741 Broadway
Redwood City, CA  94063
650-368-4444
www.friendsforyouth.org