Brian Age 20

Born in the Orwellian 1984, I grew up in Los Altos Hills, my parents divorced when I was almost 10.  It became completely clear that I was depressed when I was 14, about freshman year of high school.  It got to the point that I wasn’t attending classes at all; I would just be at home, in bed, feeling like I was falling deeper and deeper into my despair.  I battled two years with CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome).  I was sent to school counselors at first, tested, and then the private therapist visits began.  We were going to doctors for the CFS, and psychiatrists and psychologists for my now mounting diagnoses (Currently it’s: the ADD form of ADHD, Clinical Depression, Social Anxiety Disorder, OCD, and Bi-polar Disorder, Type II).

I went from school to school, and eventually landed in a SED program at Lynbrook High School near Saratoga, CA.  About a year and a half into my time there, my mother called the police and told them she was worried that I would commit suicide…  Imagine my surprise when six police officers file into my house and up into my room.  They seemed to think it was necessary to have me hospitalized.  So I was taken to the county hospital for some observation.  I was there on September 11, 2001, and then I was shipped off to Herrick the Psych part of Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley, CA for about a month.

From there, after just turning 17, I was sent to an all male “residential treatment center” Redwood Trails, in Santa Rosa, CA. When that place closed down a year later, I went off to another “residential treatment center.” Sunny Hills, in San Anselmo, CA.  At that point, I was 18, so it was voluntary… yeah, voluntary.  I stayed there for a year, and when I graduated high school that was my aging out point, when my funding ended and I had no place to go next. Sunny Hills placed me back with my father (which was not a healthy situation for me either before or after residential placement) but they had to have a place to put me.  I understand agencies have to put you somewhere so they can get their funding, but the placement has nothing to do with what is healthy and positive for your future as it wasn’t in my case. Eventually Sunny Hills started a transitional housing program where I met Zara who had been hired to design and manage that program.

With the support, stable housing and guidance of Zara, I began going to the College of Marin and figuring out how to survive on my own.  Within a year in this housing, Sunny Hills closed the program and I was out on the streets again.  It was at this point Zara started the Ambassadors of Hope and Opportunity to provide a safety net of housing and support for youth like myself who would be otherwise homeless.

Through AHO, the care of Zara, I was given the opportunity to live with one of AHO’s host families, and begin solidifying myself as an adult in this world, with all the entailed responsibilities.  With AHO’s continued support, guidance and community connections I am hoping to enter UC Berkeley in the next 2 years and work in the field of BioInfomatics.

Here are my thoughts on banking and finances:

The basics, like how to write a check, how to make a deposit (or
withdrawal), and what kinds of limitations and services accompany your account. (i.e. overdraft protection, minimum balances, penalties, check writing fees, etc.)

What a person's expenses are, the monthly ones, the non-monthly
ones (I find putting non-monthly expenses into a "monthly format"
helps me keep a general idea of what I need in my account, and what I have to pay out), and I think it's especially important to get a
sense of how much is spent casually (like on lunches, other "eating
out," instances, treats here and there, and all that stuff that eats
up your money without even much thought).

How a person gets paid. Understanding the deposit system,
knowing about taxes, and other things that get deducted is very important in addition to information and proper filing.

Savings, and knowing how much and when to make the deposits;
The difference between automatic vs. manual deposits.
Record keeping, and such.

The importance of prompt, in-full, bill payment along with
knowing what kinds of bills are necessary which is part of
responsible spending.

Molly Age 22

I am recent graduate of Dominican University, and was born and raised in the urban setting of Denver, Colorado.  At the age of fourteen I dropped out of school and ran away from home more times than one would care to count. Eventually I found myself living on the streets and hopping from couch to couch, whenever possible for nearly two years.  During the last six months of that experience with homelessness, I become involved with an organization like AHO whose purpose it was to help mobilize homeless youth in order to remove them from their current way of life.  Because of this support network, I was eventually able to reconnect with my family and became actively involved in education. 

I heard about AHO and met Zara through my professor at Dominican University in March of 2005, while completing my thesis on government policy regarding youth and child homelessness.  Since then, I have both sought out guidance from Zara, and seek to assist her in the development of the Ambassadors Of Hope Project, especially with the peer mentor program of AHO.

Currently, I am facing the reality of life in transition since graduating from Dominican.   I am dealing with similar uncertainties that I experienced six years ago when I was homeless.  Today however, contrary to my past experiences with homelessness, I have the support, guidance and a safety net that I did not have previously and because of this, I have been able to formulate a plan to attain long-term, stable housing. I hope to help other youth at AHO on their own path to a better life.

My thoughts on money:

I think there needs to be an understanding of the difference between a charge card, a credit card and a debit card.  Youth have no understanding of tax implications or cost of living on actual income, and have no fallback in case of emergencies.  Impulse shopping creates debt.  A tip I have for youth is to think over what you buy a few days.  You can always take it back if you save your receipts!  Create a budget for yourself and stick to it!  It’s YOUR Life, only you are in charge here. 

Trish Age 22

I entered the foster care system at age 7 after being abused by my father and grandfather and neglected by other family members.  My brothers and I were separated from the beginning and were never reunited, even though we have continued to be in touch. I was fortunate in that I only lived in one foster home while my brothers traveled from foster homes to group homes.  Still, growing up in the system was difficult because my foster mom didn’t understand the enormity of what had happened to me and I always had to hide who I really was. Social worker visits, court dates to terminate my parents’ rights, one hour supervised visits, humiliation by peers, invasive medical exams, and therapy that I resented never let me feel normal.  My world finally came crashing down my first semester of college when I became ill from migraines and ran away from school.  I moved to the South Bronx to live with a boyfriend and became involved in a very negative lifestyle. We often had no food, couldn’t pay bills, ended up on friends’ floors, and lived in general squalor.  In those four years, I would have done anything to escape my past and my nightmares and hold on to what I thought was a real family.  I held on so long and so tightly, enduring emotional and physical abuse, that the experience nearly destroyed me.  

After 9/11 and a traumatic personal experience, I began to wake up.  I petitioned for reenrollment in school, started asking for help in getting my scholarships back, squirreled away every bit of money I could, and voluntarily went back to therapy.  I decided that my life and my choices in the now were more important and more powerful than any ghosts could ever be.  Today, I am senior at the University of Pennsylvania and in the process of applying to joint law and social work graduate programs. I intend to advocate for the rights foster care youth within the system and create a support system for youth who have aged out.

Brianna Age 25

My mom who is a single parent raised me in Marin with my younger brother. I’ve always been very independent and stubborn when it came to my choices. I started running away at 14 years old at first to pursue a relationship and ultimately to discover myself. I worked full time even though I was homeless and spent most of my time with other homeless people and teens in San Francisco. Eventually I was reunited with my mom after I become very ill and hospitalized. It was then my mom and I decided it would be best for me to be placed in foster care. I moved almost every 6 months and attended 10 high schools in 2 years. I dropped out of high school at 16 and started attending classes at the Santa Rosa Junior college. I studied child development and psychology. I also achieved my GED. Since then I’ve received a certificate in Fashion Design and have a great passion for traveling. I’m also happy to say my mom and I have a great relationship and am thankful to all the counseling and services provided through the foster care system and youth advocates that helped me get ahead and stay on the right path. I was fortunate enough to have advocates who knew how hard it is to have a voice when you’re a minor, they provided me with resources such as job placement, school grants and scholarships and even legal advise to assist me in becoming a responsible youth with interests in a career and better future. When I heard about AHO I wanted to get involved because I now feel I can assist others in their search for a better future.

Here’s my experience with money and savings;

I had a mentor open my first savings account when I was about 12, all my birthday checks etc. went into it and I learned a lot about saving very early. Around age 15 I took a class, through the foster care system, that helped us plan our finances using a fake budget. It was a great reality game for us to learn what to expect. We discussed jobs, careers, travel, schools, scholarships, and factored in rent, bills, taxes, and personal expenses. It was about a week long class over at San Rafael High school. It really got some of us thinking you could see who was going to float and who was going to sink. One factor that was left out and haunts me to this day is Credit Checks. In order to get an apartment or credit card you must have good credit. To this day I can’t get a credit card (which is probably for the better) and have never seen my credit report. I’m still trying to get a free copy of it.

For a while I had 2 savings accounts and would split paychecks and called one account "retirement" It eventually was renamed "Hawaii" at that worked out great too.

Banking online is really easy and quick to see what checks go through and when etc. I recommend it to everyone. Also Students usually get free checking with proof of school ID.

A huge help to me was the Marin Education Fund, They really encourage people to go for their goals as if money was no object and that reduces a huge stress when trying to balance a full time education.

Lastly my best friend acquired huge debt my the time he was 18 and eventually had to file for bankruptcy. He hired a financial adviser to hold all his money and checks because he couldn't control himself. They would meet biweekly and he would bring his bills and she would write out his checks. He was given an allowance that fit his budget that included enough for lattes and entertainment. This really worked for him because it was out of his hands.