DEAR LIFT Supporters,

I know what you’re thinking! It’s astounding to have come so far so fast. But when local moms and dads decided to fill a big gap in local services, to meet the needs of local students, the support of local government, businesses and families made it all possible. Five years of development, one building purchased, seven extraordinary employees, and an awesome Board of Directors later… we have completed YEAR TWO of operations at the Claudia Nance Rollins Youth Center! Look through this report and you’ll see – it IS astounding!

This year a new Surgeon General’s Advisory was released on the public health crisis that loneliness, isolation, and disconnection pose to the American public. Disconnection fundamentally affects our mental, physical, and societal health. In fact, loneliness and isolation increase the risk for individuals to develop mental health challenges in their lives, and lacking connection can increase the risk for premature death as much as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.

The Surgeon General said, “Strengthening the social fabric of our communities is essential in order to improve the health of people and communities and must be a national priority. Addressing loneliness is as vital to protecting our health as addressing obesity, tobacco, or addiction.” A new National Strategy to Advance Social Connection recommends that individuals, governments, workplaces, health systems, and community organizations take steps to strengthen relationships and increase connection. What happens each afternoon at LIFT Youth Center is doing exactly that. Yes, kids are learning things and having fun. Yes, they are staying out of trouble when they are here. Yes, they are building leadership skills and developing resiliency. But the value and investment of the time they are spending creating and deepening relationships with each other and with trusted adults is priceless. When I asked some students about this idea, one responded with enthusiasm, “I have for sure made connections here and I am much more confident – I mean, I even take my hoody off here.” If you speak teenager, then you know… that is HUGE! A willingness to be vulnerable and open, not hiding behind the bulky wall of comfort, but daring to know others and be known… that is magic.

THANK YOU for being a supporter of our work at the Center. Thank you for standing up with these children and helping us to provide such a needed resource. It means the world to them! I asked a few students how it felt to have strangers support them by financially providing the Youth Center. One said, “It makes me feel amazing, because this place is helping me!” Another said, “Their support makes me think that they must be people who want to see us get better and do better.” One student saw it this way, “They are making a good investment in the community. LIFT is essential for todays’ teens and this kind of support SHOULD BE free.”

Let’s keep this astounding movement going!