Tidewater Youth Services Foundation - What We Do

The Tidewater Youth Services Foundation supports and enhances all services of the Tidewater Youth Services Commission. We operate according to a strategic plan that outlines the areas on which we will focus our support.  These areas are:

• Education – Poor academic achievement is a risk factor and predictor of delinquency. We operate an Academic Support and Literacy Program staffed by a special education teacher and a reading specialist to bolster the academic skills and reading levels of youth. As the beneficiary of the Volunteer Hampton Roads Corporate Volunteer Council’s Back-to-School Project, we are able to provide book bags and school supplies for all of our clients and their siblings.
• Arts and cultural enrichment – Positive, constructive activities are an effective deterrent to delinquent behavior. The Foundation encourages our youth to participate in the arts and in cultural enrichment. We host a Cultural Arts and Youth Recognition event at the end of every summer to showcase the talents of the young people we serve and to provide an opportunity for recognition.
• Social and life skills – Possessing good social and life skills is a factor in the prevention of delinquent behavior. The Foundation assists the Commission by providing resources needed to teach these skills.
• Recreation and activities – Opportunities for recreation and positive activities are vital to the avoidance of delinquent behavior. The TYS Foundation funds the Commission’s Outdoor Adventure Program and provides opportunities for youth to participate in recreational activities.
• Dignity and self-esteem – A feeling of self-worth is essential to positive youth development and is a factor in the prevention of delinquency. The Foundation provides youth with items that are basic to human dignity and self-esteem, such as clothing and other personal items, and maintains the physical environment of group homes.
• Family support – Strong families are a mainstay of positive youth development.  The Foundation provides emergency financial assistance to help stabilize families and get them through crisis situations, such as the loss of utilities, lack of food or potential eviction.  Click here and scroll to the bottom to read a letter from a grateful client.
• Staff and program development – Both the Tidewater Youth Services Commission and the Tidewater Youth Services Foundation are committed to the use of effective programming that is based on research and sound therapeutic principles. The Foundation helps to ensure that the Commission has the resources needed to excel in these areas.
• Program preservation and development – The TYS Foundation raises funds to support programming that would otherwise be eliminated or could not be developed due to a lack of, or loss of, public funding.