When Faith came to UC Davis from the Los Angeles area as a former foster youth, she did not realize she was looking for more people like herself until she found them.
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When her mother passed away from cancer, Kimberly became a ward of the state until her older sister could take her in. Now Kimberly wants to become an oncology physician’s assistant.
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Deandre had just entered his second year at UC Davis when he discovered a wealth of resources at his fingertips.
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Make It Happen for Yolo County has been proud to call UC Davis student Evelyn Aguilar our intern since fall 2022. She has been an incredible advocate for her fellow transition age youth, and we are excited that she will continue with us through her senior year that starts in the fall.
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After almost ten years as an entirely volunteer based organization, we are excited to announce that we have hired our first employee. Cathi Schmidt joined our organization this month in the role of Executive Director.
Read MoreDiana Fong has seen her fair share of teens leaving group homes or foster care with nothing buta garbage bag of belongings to call their own. As a placement officer with the Yolo County Probation Department, Diana works with Make It Happen to make sure local transition age youth get what they need to fully furnish their first apartments.
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Valeri Garcia grew up in a family that always stepped up when someone needed support. It’s fitting that she too stepped up when the opportunity arose to start and grow the UC Davis Guardian Scholars program for students with foster care experience, creating an environment and support system where the students could achieve their goals.
Read MoreDAVIS, Calif. – Make It Happen for Yolo County has received a grant of $10,000 from the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation to provide local transition age youth in need, mostly foster youth ages 18-24, with the furnishings, household goods and resources needed to become successful first-time renters.
“Transition age youth, particularly those leaving foster care, are at very high risk of becoming homeless due to a lack of resources and support,” said Jan Judson, board president, Make It Happen for Yolo County. “While our partners help connect them to housing, there are no other organizations in Yolo County to ensure they have the tools, appliances and furniture to safely live in their new independent living environment. Renters with no resources to properly care for their apartments are much more likely to be evicted or develop a poor rental history, and that risk is even higher as we battle a housing crisis in the greater Sacramento area. We are grateful to the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation for helping set them up for success.”
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At Make It Happen for Yolo County, we are committed to partnering with other organizations working with transition age youth so that the youth we serve will have as many resources as possible as they move out on their own and into their first homes.
One of our new partners is the Woodland-based nonprofit All Leaders Must Serve, a mentor organization that empowers young adults ages 15-25 through job-readiness training to become self-sufficient, prepare for a living wage job and give back to the community.
Jayne Williams, founder of All Leaders Must Serve, knows all too well the struggles that transition age youth face.
Read MoreWe are proud to introduce the winner of this year’s 2022 Make It Happen Youth Excellence Award: Faith Dale!
Each June, Make It Happen for Yolo County sponsors the Youth Excellence Award for one outstanding participant graduating from the Yolo County Independent Living Skills Program. The award winner is recognized based on academic merit, character and personal growth, and receives a $500 stipend for their hard work.
Faith could not be more deserving of this award. She entered foster care at age 12 due to abuse while she, her mother and sister were experiencing homelessness. For the next four years, separated from her sister, she was in and out of foster homes and group homes, frequently running away. At age 16, Faith decided to take control over her own life, as much as she could.
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Linda Bresnick of Davis is a busy volunteer with several nonprofits across Yolo County, but most of her work is done behind the scenes on her computer.
About four years ago, Linda learned about Make It Happen for Yolo County and became the interface between our website and the people who write to us asking to donate household items. She coordinates the donation process to make sure it goes smoothly.
Read MoreAfter bouncing around four foster care group homes across California for two years, “Mel” was never sure if people were doing things out of the goodness of their hearts or not – she always felt like strings were attached. When she received a bed from Make It Happen for Yolo County earlier this year, she learned that some people just genuinely want to help others…
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We are proud to partner with this wonderful organization in Davis that refurbishes donated computers, laptops and iPads and provides them without cost to those in need.
2020 has been a challenging year. Thanks to our supportive community, Make it Happen for Yolo County has been able to continue to provide support for transition age youth.
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