Beyond the Walls (BTW) is a program for teens and young adults who are often unsupported and get lost in the “system.” It provides one-on-one and group mentoring, coaching and tutoring, financial support, educational and workforce development services, and other wraparound support to these youth. BTW works with teens and young adults who are in need of independent living skills whether they were part of the foster care system or just need support.
Currently, Beyond the Walls coaches spend a small amount of time focusing solely on youth in our residential programs, but thanks to the Colorado Health Foundation we are able to expand! We will be hiring two new Beyond the Walls coaches to work with our residential youth to build more independent living skills while they are in our residential programs and establish relationships with the program before they “age out” or graduate from our program. Beyond the Walls coaches work with these youth to establish relationships with nurturing adults, engage in community or extracurricular activities, plan for school or future careers, establish healthy decision making skills and more!
Beyond the Walls has been growing and expanding since it began in 2012. One of the favorite new additions is Bloom, a place for artistic expression. Bloom meets once a month and is a safe space for youth to express themselves through art. Every quarter has a different theme for the artists to explore, such as “growth” and “strength”. The program has been a big success so far and is quickly expanding. We are so excited to put more resources into this and our other Beyond the Walls projects thanks to the Foundation!