VolunteersForYouth

Volunteers for Youth has a simple mission - to positively integrate young people into the community and help them recognize that they are valuable and important. Every young person in VFY's programs deserves a chance, and in some cases a second chance, to be strong and productive. We believe that every child in our community counts, no matter how dire their circumstances.

Volunteers for Youth's programs help youth become members of the community by cultivating their strengths, encouraging positive relationships and developing their ability to make responsible choices. Our programs include a Volunteer Mentor Program that matches youth with adult mentors, a Juvenile Community Services and Restitution Program that helps youth complete court-ordered community service and the Orange County Teen Court which provides an alternative court program for middle and high school students.

Volunteers for Youth's newest program, Every Girl Counts, brings together middle school girls on a weekly basis in a group setting during the school day. The program empowers young women through a life skills curriculum that fosters pride, self-esteem and a sense of achievement. Led by VFY staff member, Nicole Hunter, Every Girl Counts facilitates fun activities that teach young girls how to become successful women.

Last fall, Every Girl Counts participants attended an open house at North Carolina A&T in Greensboro where they learned about various majors at a college fair, went on a campus tour, and cheered on the Aggies football team. On February 29th, they went to the CIAA Middle School Day in Charlotte, where they heard from inspiring speakers at a college fair and attended a CIAA basketball tournament game at Bobcats Arena. At the end of the festivities, one of the group members commented that she had never planned to go to college but that the day's experiences had changed her mind!