Friends for Youth Honored as a Welcoming Star

Redwood City Together is excited to present the 25th quarterly Welcoming Star Award to Friends for Youth! Cecilia Chu, Executive Director of Friends for Youth, and Michael Solorio, Partnerships Coordinator, received the award on behalf of Friends for Youth at the January 24, 2022 virtual City Council meeting.  

Friends for Youth is a non-profit organization that pairs trusted adult mentors with local youth facing significant challenges in their lives. Many of the youth that Friends for Youth supports have been impacted by abuse, are living in poverty, have an incarcerated parent, and/or lack a trusted adult to talk to. Friends for Youth plays a vital role in protecting vulnerable youth populations by positively impacting the course of their lives through the power of mentorship. These quality mentoring relationships often last for years or even a lifetime. 

Since 1979, Friends for Youth has been an important part of the Redwood City and North Fair Oaks community, fostering over 2500 mentor-mentee relationships since their inception and touching the lives of over 2 million youth through their Mentoring Institute, which provides training and assistance to other youth-serving organizations. Their work creating welcoming and safe environments for marginalized youth, many of whom come from BIPOC and low-income backgrounds, epitomizes the values behind the Welcoming Star Award, which is why we are honored to have them as our latest Welcoming Star. 

To learn more about Friends for Youth, visit www.friendsforyouth.org/.  

Community members can support Friends for Youth by donating to Friends for Youth, applying to be a mentor, or referring a youth to their program by emailing michael@friendsforyouth.org. 

Welcoming Redwood City is the welcoming initiative of Redwood City Together that builds empathy, understanding, and supportive action to bridge social divides such as race, class, and immigration status. To honor local pioneers and programs which build an inclusive community, Redwood City Together gives a quarterly Welcoming Stars award. Nominate a Welcoming Star here!