Connecting youth to resources to live a better life, is the goal of You Turns.
The program was first created and provided services in Greater Moncton but has since expanded to include Kent County and Miramichi. There is also now an interest from the Campbellton area in using the services.
“Our goal is to ideally have one of us in every school so we can give these supports,” says Provincial Strategic Coordinator Chelsea Gray.
She says 75 per cent of the students on their caseload are not regularly attending school, with some who may just appear as though they’ve dropped out.
“They’re not there at all, or they’re there and we can’t find them. They might be hiding under stairwells, they may be in the bathrooms, they may be work avoidance, or there could be some bullying issues happening. They may be present, but something is keeping them from getting in those classes and getting the education that they deserve,” Gray adds.
She says 25 per cent are attending regularly, and are doing work, but there are other barriers affecting their lives.
“They’re high academics, but they’re dealing with all kinds of other things going on at home. I had a youth who just couldn’t get to school. They had no shoes. Nobody knew this. They just weren’t attending. When I checked in with them, they shared that they had been beaten up at a party over the weekend, and someone stole their shoes, and they were too embarrassed to go anywhere. So we’re able to work with those kids and find access to things like that so that they can continue coming to school and continue having those supports,” Gray explained.
Food insecurity is a big issue right now for youth, with many who do not have access to consistent meals, who are not getting three square meals a day and are not getting any snacks.
“They might not even understand what a meal is and looks like. I’ve had youth that have never even walked into a restaurant before. They didn’t know what a menu was,” Gray says. “We’re seeing an increase in this because of COVID. We had so many families that were not able to get work, they’ve had to move. They’ve had to join another family household. So a lot of families are trying to stretch budgets right now.”
Over the last year, almost 24 per cent of the youth on all of their caseloads shared that they were living without stable housing and experienced complete homelessness for some time.
“Another trend that we’re seeing with our youth is when we’re asking them, how many supportive adults do you have in your life? You can see 63 per cent are saying, I don’t have anybody in my corner. That includes their parents,” Gray adds.
You Turns provides support in schools or office spaces or homes, and they offer a presence in the lives of these youth.
“We can be there and we can walk that road with them,” Gray explains.
