Today volunteers from the University of Utah Health Care Program helped fix up homes that house young adults who are aging out of Foster Care.
The Youth Services Milestone Project is a program that helps 18 to 22 year olds who would face homelessness because they are no longer eligible for the foster care system. A home in Sandy is available for up to five males and another location in West Valley City can house six females. Melissa-Anne Johnson is the Milestone Project Coordinator and the Leadership and Mentoring Coordinator at the Division of Youth Services. She spoke about some of the things that University of Utah Health Care employees were doing to help out.
"At the boys home they helped do yard work, maintenance, and repairs inside the house and they also have repainted the house. At the girls house they’re helping with the storage unit, sorting out donations, and organization," Johnson says.
Stevie Romero was in the foster care program for ten years but now lives on her own in the Milestone home.
"After the first, like, week or so I was able to, be able, to adjust to it. And it’s wonderful now, I love living on my own. And it’s great to know I have that independence," Romero says.
Costs for Milestone houses are anywhere from 100 to 200 dollars a month. Rent goes up every three months so that those in the program will be ready to transition to living completely on their own.