Second Stories

COVID-19: Meghan (VP of Residential Services) and Youth Homelessness

In this episode we talk with Meghan Huebner, Second Story's Vice President of Residential Services. Meghan talks about some of the unique challenges for youth and families experiencing homeless during the pandemic and how Second Story has been able to safely support the youth in our programs as well as find new opportunities to reach youth who need help. Second Stories is created and produced by Second Story. Second Stories is created and produced by Second Story. Learn more about us at www.second-story.org We hope you will join us for our virtual Beacon of Hope Fundraiser this fall. Learn more at www.second-story.org/2020-virtual-fundraiser.

Jimena

Jimena experienced homelessness for a long and exhausting five years. Her situation made her eligible for more than one of our programs – she was a teenager, a young mom, largely abandoned by her family, floating in and out of increasingly risky situations because of her desperation. Yet Jimena is one of the many youth who was not able to find help through Second Story or another like ours, for some of the unfortunately usual reasons: she didn’t know what was available to her, and she was burdened by shame and embarrassment. Jimena shares her story with a rawness and vulnerability that gives us a peek into what it’s like to be in her position, and she reflects with a rare clarity on how those years felt and how they have impacted her as a woman and a mother.

COVID-19: Cathy Benn (Senior Therapist) and Mental Health

In this episode, we’re speaking with Cathy, Second Story’s Senior Therapist. She leads Second Story’s counseling and mental health evaluations, working both to support staff and implement best practices and also one-on-one with youth struggling with their mental health. She talks to us about the relationship between COVID-19 and mental health and why this has been an especially challenging time for the young people we serve. Second Stories is created and produced by Second Story. Learn more about us at www.second-story.org

Caitlin

Caitlin grew up without the family structure a lot of us take for granted, entering the foster care system as a preteen and juggling between families throughout her teenage years until she was emancipated at 18. Yet Caitlin is not one to focus on what she didn’t have but rather what she did: ingenuity, independence, and outright intelligence. Her story sheds light on an important group: teenagers in foster care and otherwise disconnected youth, and she introduces us to all that these young people have many times endured and also all that they have to offer us. Second Stories is created and produced by Second Story. Learn more about us at www.second-story.org

COVID-19: Judith Dittman (CEO) and Second Story’s Response

We’re starting off this season with a special episode about COVID-19 and its impact on our work and young people in our community. We begin with Judith, Second Story’s CEO, to talk about how the pandemic has affected our work. As Second Story’s primary decisionmaker and leader, Judith gives us a bird’s eye view of how COVID-19 has both impacted Second Story overall and, more broadly, the youth who seek services like ours both in our community and beyond. To hear more about how you can support Second Story’s COVID-19 needs visit www.second-story.org/news/covid-19