New Dream Seekers Center Help Young People Aging Out of Foster Care in Memphis
The South Memphis Alliance Inc., (SMA) held a kickoff ceremony to launch the new
Dream Seekers Center, which will provide services for young people, ages 14 to 24, who have been in foster care. Dream Seekers plans to offer services to about 100 local young people annually that include:
- Temporary shelter for up to 18-months for those who are homeless.
- Training in money management and Individual Development Accounts (IDA), in which participants' savings will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $1,000 annually.
- Drug and alcohol counseling.
- HIV/AIDS testing.
- Classes in anger management, goal-setting, parenting, and much more.
On Friday, August 13, 2010, SMA hosted a kick off event at the Memphis Grizzlies Athletic Center that featured author and actress Victoria Rowell from the Young and the Restless. She also signed copies of her book, The Women Who Raised Me.
"Memphis has a high rate of young people aging out of foster care once they turn 18, and these services will enable dozens of very vulnerable young people in our community make successful transitions to adulthood," said Reginald Milton, President of the SMA, Inc., a nonprofit agency serving families for the past decade.
First Tennessee Bank donated a 9,000-square-foot-office building to be used as the Dream Seekers Center. First Tennessee also will assist SMA in helping these young people build a financial nest egg through the matched savings accounts.
The Tennessee Department of Children's Services (DCS) recently selected SMA, Inc., to implement a set of core strategies that improve the lives of young people aging out of foster care and the systems that serve them. DCS is partnering with the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative (Jim Casey), a national foundation that brings together the people, systems, and resources necessary to make sure youth leaving foster care system make successful transitions to adulthood. SMA was selected by DCS to implement the work in Memphis.
Media Coverage:
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