YES Coaches help youth in care navigate their journey to adulthood

Jenn Girard has filled her shared office with graduation decor. There is a “Class of 2024” banner, graduation cap cutouts, and other congratulatory trimmings. 

She’s celebrating two youth who graduated from Holland College in June. She knows them from the group home where she used to work, and now is their coach in the Youth Extended Services (YES) Program. 

“These are monumental moments in their lives, and that’s the cool thing about this job – we get to be a part of that,” Girard says. “I don’t take it lightly, because they don’t have many people in their lives that they can feel safe with.”

Developing a network of support is one of the primary goals of the YES Program. Youth in the care of the Director of Child Protection, all of whom spent time in group homes or foster homes, work one-on-one with a coach, whose role is to help them be as prepared as possible for the challenges and opportunities they may face as they move into adulthood. 

“The program focusses on core skills,” explains YES coach Lindsey Rhynes, who works alongside Girard. The program recognizes that youth who have grown up in care often face additional challenges in transitioning to adulthood, as they may lack the stability, support systems, and resources of their families and peers.

Rhynes says money management is one skill they are frequently asked to help with, as well as cooking. Girard shares an example of how they go about a request like this: 

“A youth I work with had a $20 budget to make a meal that could spread over a couple of nights. We decided to make chicken burrito bowls. We sat down together and made a grocery list, and then went to the store,” she says. 

They came back and cooked together in the kitchen at the YES coaches’ office, took a picture of the final meal, and Girard wrote up the recipe. She plans to create a cookbook for youth in the program, and include details like price comparisons between buying, for example, a pre-cooked chicken versus raw chicken. 

The YES Program is voluntary, referral-based, and focusses on giving participating youth a voice and a choice in their activities. Youth work directly with their coach to come up with an individualized plan , based on their specific needs. The coaches are part of the Child and Family Services team that works closely with social workers, youth workers and/or foster parents to ensure the best interests of the child/youth are paramount and needed skills for independence are developed. 

“It’s different day-to-day,” says Girard. “Sometimes it’s just a phone call to chat about stressors in life, sometimes it’s taking them to a doctor’s appointment or helping them open a bank account.” 

And eight months into the program, Girard and Rhynes still get requests for help in areas they wouldn’t have anticipated.

“The other day Jenn had a client ask how to store an apple pie,” Rhynes shares. “Something that we wouldn’t necessarily identify as something someone might need help with. But they don’t have that relationship with a parent or guardian at home, they can’t just call them up to be like, ‘hey, how do I store this food?’ So they ask us.”

“It brought tears to my eyes,” says Girard. 

The YES program began in January this year and is currently focused on youth who turned/are turning 18 in 2024, but will expand to serve youth in care or youth who have recently aged out of care from the ages of 14 to 25. This expansion is a direct result of the new Child, Youth and Family Services Act, which legislates that youth aging out of care will be eligible to receive transitional supports and services until the age of 25 (up from 21), allowing them to transition into adulthood with greater support.  

“It can be a huge shock for youth when they age out of care and are on their own, facing challenges they didn’t anticipate and without family supports,” Rhynes says. “My own teenage years were difficult to navigate, and I definitely connected to some community supports that helped me. My motto is , ‘be the person you needed when you were younger,’ guides my work.” 

There is a delicate balance to the job of supporting youth, while also promoting their independence. The approach to this can vary. One example is connecting youth to community based employment supports for help with resume development, interview preparation and general support in finding employment. 

“I will go with a youth to the employment assistance provider initially, support them as they meet people and get them familiar with the service,” Rhynes explains. “And then support them to take responsibility, kind of scale back and let them continue on their own. They’ve made the connection, so months or years from now if they need help in another job search, they’re hopefully comfortable to go back themselves and use that resource.” 

And that is one of the most rewarding things about being a YES coach, Girard says. 

“Just to see them grow and be successful in their own lives.”