Morgan grew up in Phoenix and was raised by a loving and supportive mother. She was a gifted student with a bright future ahead of her. Howver, the family struggled to make ends meet, with Morgan’s dad living in Mexico, unable to support the family. When she was a teenager, Morgan was in the [...]

“In 8th grade, I was taken from my mother’s care and placed into DCS custody. They told me my mother was an unfit parent due to her use of drugs and because she was verbally and emotionally abusive.” “Going through this and trying to get through school was hard. I wanted to give up [...]

When Matthew applied to Youth On Their Own, his application had been marked “URGENT” by his School Liaison. Matthew had just left his mother’s home, trying to escape her physically and emotionally abusive partner. He knew he had to get out of the house, as he was falling further and further behind in school, [...]

Jessie witnessed her mother viciously attack her sister, nearly killing her.   A friend convinced her to reach out   for help. “Youth On Their Own   literally saved my life,” Jessie said. YOTO staff informed DCS of the ongoing abuse, which prompted an investigation. “The DCS caseworkers didn’t believe me. Because my parents were above the [...]

Youth On Their Own has been one of the few constants in Jamie’s life.  Even as a little girl, Jamie was beaten by her mother, often showing up at school with bruises. After school officials notified DCS, Jamie and her sisters were removed from the home but were unable to be placed together. Jamie [...]

Raised by a mother who was addicted to crystal meth, Garrett never knew what each day would bring.  When his mom was happy he could play alone in his room. When his mom was mad the beatings would start. Garrett was eventually removed by DCS after the situation in his home had deteriorated to [...]

Tommy’s mother left when Tommy was  two and never returned, leaving him in the care of his drug-addicted father. After six years of neglect, Tommy was removed from the home by DCS. Shortly thereafter, Tommy’s father died of a drug overdose. Living in cramped quarters with his aunt, uncle, and four cousins, Tommy was [...]

It was after their father died that Luis and Juana’s mother started drinking. At first it was only in the evenings. Pretty soon she was drunk all the time, calling them names and telling them she had never wanted kids to begin with, and that they had ruined her life. As the older brother, [...]

As a small child, Blake was often left to fend for himself. On the nights when his mom was with her drug friends and his dad was nowhere to be found, he and his older sisters would be left alone in the house with no food and the power shut off. Concerned neighbors called [...]

Bianca has lived in fear for most of her life. The only child of two drug addicts, chaos and uncertainty were the only constants at her house. Her parents barely noticed her comings and goings, much less cared whether she went to school. It was Bianca who discovered her father dead of an overdose [...]