VOICES' Founding Story

In 2004, community leaders from various agencies that support foster youth in Napa County came together to formally address the question: what happens to foster youth after they leave the system? They quickly discovered that the challenges facing these youth were insurmountable – and the services they were receiving insufficient.

They gathered over 100 representatives from various agencies and created a task force to address this problem. From this task force, the idea of VOICES was born, a community center that would bring into one place the resources available to transitioning foster youth in Napa.

On The Move proposed that the best way to develop this program was to have youth at the center, working in collaboration with adults. In the summer of 2005 ten youth, all of whom had spent time in the foster care system, were recruited to become founders of VOICES and give a powerful voice to Napa foster youth.

After a period of three tiring months, the founding youth hosted a grand opening, opening the doors to VOICES on November 22, 2005. VOICES immediately began to empower youth by utilizing holistic services through out their transitions, while building a loving community to call home.

In 2007 local agencies and foundations in Sonoma County completed a community needs assessment, evaluating the services offered to current and former foster youth, as well as identifying what additional services were needed. The assessment revealed gaps of employment, education and mentoring programs - as well as overall coordination between existing services.

It became clear that services being provided to foster youth in Sonoma County needed a transformation. A focus group made up of current and former foster youth was formed in order to determine if a VOICES program would be a good fit in Sonoma County. When the answer was a resounding “Yes!” community collaboration meetings began amongst local agencies in order to move the vision of a VOICES Sonoma forward.

Nine founding foster youth began to work along side the VOICES Sonoma Steering Committee, made up of leaders from agencies and foundations. Together they recruited co-located staff, designed the program, and identified funding sources. After a building was found and leased at a central location in Santa Rosa, the founding youth organized a momentous Grand Opening on April 2nd, 2009 in which 180 youth, community stakeholders, and public officials marked the launch of the Sonoma VOICES program.

For detailed and current information on VOICES' program in Napa, visit the overview page for VOICES Napa.
For detailed and current information information on VOICES' program in Santa Rosa, visit the overview page for VOICES Sonoma.