Youth Solidarity Movement
Cultivating community for teenagers and the adults who care for them,
so that young people can experience belonging in Oregon.
We all want youth in our lives to experience belonging. But we are increasingly isolated amid a youth mental health crisis, systems that pit us against one another, less in-person gathering spaces and more screen time.
Parents and caregivers can feel alone in caring for teens wrestling with questions of identity, belonging, and spirituality. Church leaders can feel alone and overwhelmed, wanting more capacity in caring for young people.
Our invitation: let's not do this alone.
Connecting Teenagers in Community where ALL belong
YSM accompanies and activates local Youth Collectives of play and purpose, where young person’s unique qualities and talents are celebrated in community. All belong means all, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic status, neurodivergence, ability, or any way society would divide us.
Support for Parents, Caregivers, and the Adults who Care for Teens
YSM supports grandparents and youth workers and coaches and teachers and congregations in their care for teens, including forming local communities of practice for parents and caregivers alongside Youth Collectives.
A larger movement across Oregon, so we don't have to do this alone
Statewide youth retreats, youth worker workshops on a trauma-informed approach to creating spaces of belonging for youth, webinars for parents about caring for LGBTQ youth, ongoing partnership with Trauma Informed Oregon in supporting local communities, and more.
Building resilience, grounded in sacred connection, in times like these
An embodied, holistic approach to the wisdom of our faith traditions and cultures, that tends to youth mental health and wholeness, invites youth into care for neighbor, connects young people with multi-generational community, and moves toward belonging and purpose greater than ourselves.
Want to help grow a Youth Solidarity Movement in Oregon? Chris Dela Cruz, Director of Youth Initiatives, at chris@togetherlab.org
