By Dawn Scotland
The Truth Reporter
Open Arms Transformation Living hosted its first Brick by Brick Capital Campaign Gala at the Premier Banquet Hall Thursday, November 7. The event featured dinner, a silent auction and raffles to raise funds to continue to combat youth homelessness and for OATL Toledo to purchase a home and open the second Youth Shelter in Lucas County.
TaTiana Cash, WTOL 11 News Anchor, served as mistress of ceremonies. The evening featured keynote speaker Cecelia Williamson, Ph.D., executive director of the Human Trafficking and Social Justice Institute at the University of Toledo.
Open Arms Transformation Living is a nonprofit dedicated to empowering marginalized female youth aged 12 to 20 who face the challenges of homelessness, exploitation, and running away.
The mission began as a response to the growing issues of youth homelessness, teen dating violence, and human trafficking. (source: oatltoledo.square.site)
Open Arms Transformation Living was established in March 2022 as a 507 (c)3 nonprofit addressing youth homelessness in Toledo, where approximately 2,000 local teens are homeless.
Some statistics on affected youth:
- 50 percent of foster care children face immediate homelessness upon aging out of the system.
- Additionally, within 48 hours of being released from foster care, a staggering 75% of homeless young adults resort to engaging in various forms of survival sex, such as street prostitution, working in strip clubs, or participating in pornographic activities online. (The National Center for Homeless Education (NCHE))
- The average age of entry into prostitution is typically between 13 and 14 years old. (Hampton & Lieggi (2020)
- Suicide is the primary cause of death among homeless youth, with a staggering 32% of them having attempted suicide at least once. (source: oatltoledo.square.site)
“The purpose of the gala is to bring awareness regarding youth homelessness, teen dating violence and human trafficking,” stated Fonda Royster, founder and executive Director of OATL. “It’s also to raise funds to get brick and mortar because the majority of the clientele we serve are human trafficking survivors , teen dating violence survivors and children that struggle with poverty.”
Royster is a survivor of teen homelessness herself and offers a unique prospective to serve her clients. “I was homeless at the age of 14 for six months. My second mom is from New Jersey, and she had someone transport me from here to New Jersey to save me from the streets,” she stated.
Her professional experience also led her to expand beyond the traditional for the affected youth population. “I’ve been in case work for 22 years,” stated Royster, “and I just have problem that kids are in the system for 18 years and then they get kicked out. No support and no basic life skills… so within a month people are surprised that they’re locked up selling their bodies on the corner,’ she stated.
Beyond the immediate relief OATL provides through essential resources like food, clothing, hygiene products and housing assistance, Royster stated that OATL educates their clients on what healthy relationships should look like, fostering long-term change.
The evening included testimonials from survivors and participants of the program.
Sponsors included Joe and Sandy Fox, Crystal Communications – Crystal Taylor, Harbor Youth Services, Owens Corning, Lucas County Children Services, Lucas County Metropolitan Housing Authority, Northern Ohio REACH, JRM Mentoring, Urban Beat WIMX, Juice 107.3 Henry Garcia, and One Me to Be.
To learn more about the organization or to donate visit oatltoledo.square.site.
