Denton County-based nonprofit Journey to Dream seeks to be a guiding light for young people.

The organization relies on its donors—it is not state or federally funded—and held its gala at the Hilton Garden Inn on June 17 in Lewisville to fund its two main programs, Kyle’s Place and the Dream Initiative.

CEO Nesa Grider and Development Coordinator Sarah Ryan spoke about the nonprofit’s needs at the Journey to Dream office in Lewisville. The gala, the nonprofit's largest fundraiser of the year, featured speaker Michael Oher, a former foster child and National Football League star whose life was the subject of a book and movie “The Blind Side,” starring Sandra Bullock, who won an Oscar for her performance.

Journey to Dream employs 33 people who work in different capacities throughout the organization—including at Kyle’s Place, which is a residential facility that houses homeless teens ages 14-19. The Dream Initiative is a school-based program. The nonprofit accepts monetary and in-kind contributions, and volunteers are encouraged to help at the organization. Between Kyle’s Place and the school programs and outreach, Journey to Dream serves about 15,000 young people every year, Ryan said.

Journey to Dream began in-school programs in 2004, Ryan said.

“We realized that there weren’t a lot of resources out there for teens needing support for mental health, struggling with anxiety, depression, bullying—all those challenges that teens go through,” she said.

The school programs, under The Dream Initiative, are ongoing and a big part of the overall organization program.

“Through those programs, we had teens that were coming to us and disclosing that they were homeless, and they needed a place to stay. They needed shelter; they needed more support than just at school,” Ryan said.

Kyle’s Place opened in 2017, and it was named after Kyle Milliman, who was a member of the “Journey to a Dream” group—now the Dream Initiative—at Hebron High School in Lewisville ISD. He was an athlete, excellent student and role model, Ryan said, and he encouraged others to try to deal with their problems. After dealing with an injury and losing a college scholarship, he sank into depression and died by suicide. His death shook the school and community, and Journey to Dream officials decided to honor him and his work for his peers, and to remember the purpose of Journey to Dream’s mission, which is to help young people going through struggles.

Kyle’s Place started with eight beds. It’s grown to a capacity of 19, Ryan said. Outside of the actual building, the facility can help both young people in the community and foster care. It’s a transitional living facility that helps people move on to the next phase of their lives.

“We’re pretty much always full,” Ryan said. “We actually have a waitlist usually for Kyle’s Place, so that’s part of why we’re trying to grow right now so that we can meet that need. When the teens come into Kyle’s Place, they typically are coming through [Child Protective Services] or being referred to us. So we sit down with them, make sure that we can actually serve them and that we’re able to meet their needs, and that they’ll fit well at the home with the other teens.”

The teens can stay as long as they want, Ryan said, but they have to follow the program, get along with the other residents, stay in school, and avoid drugs and alcohol.

If they do get involved with substances, Journey to Dream finds them support for that issue. The average stay for a teen is 216 days, Grider said, but a teen could enter the facility at age 14 and could stay until they are age 19. While Journey to Dream is based in Denton County and its primary focus is on this area, teens come from a wide background and could be coming from anywhere, Ryan said.

The nonprofit is working to launch another program in which young people could move into a place and stay until they are 25, Grider said.

All of the teens get counseling depending on their needs, Ryan said. Teens also can receive school support, including tutoring, and are encouraged to do well in school and pursue school activities. They can have other needs met, such as life skills, medical, transportation, clothing and driver’s ed.

“Our whole goal is to create a sense of normalcy for them, which many of them have not had,” Grider said. “One of the things that make us unique is the population we serve is [ages] 14 to 19, and we are one of the only campuses in this area that serve that population.”

Journey to Dream found its niche, she said, and the nonprofit tries to figure out a way to help teens—such as with clothes, gift cards or help with its partner network—if they don’t have room for them at Kyle’s Place. The long-term goal is to continue to expand, she said, as this population’s needs are an “epidemic.”

The Dream Initiative is a curriculum-based, school program and mental health program that addresses young people who are struggling with a number of issues, such isolation, bullying or experiences that teens encounter, Grider said. The program can be found at Lewisville, Denton, Dallas and Irving ISDs, and seeks to expand to other districts. It is available to any middle and high school teen who wants to sign up for it.

“The No. 1 thing I want them to know, when they leave there, they can turn around and say that they were loved unconditionally every single day, because most of them don’t know that; they don’t understand that,” Grider said. “Once they’re a Kyle’s Place kid, they’re a Kyle’s Place kid. I don’t even care if they’re 60. They’ll never be abandoned because that is what they are most afraid of, is that they’re going to be abandoned again.”

People may volunteer by signing up at www.journeytodream.com.

Journey to Dream

579 N. Valley Parkway, Ste. 200, Lewisville

469-470-2382 [email protected]

www.journeytodream.com

Office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Kyle's Place is a 24-hour facility.