This week continues my commitment to celebrate organizations that support teen moms. While I’m deeply concerned for these young women’s welfare and that of their children, I know there are good people doing good things all over this country. Thank you to all those who have provided suggestions for other programs to highlight. I hope to get to each one in the coming weeks.
A program in Orange County, California called Fristers provides educational support and parenting programs to teen moms and dads in their area. Their tagline is “Teaching Teen Parents to Thrive.” Most of their programs benefit moms and their kids, but there are active programs for dads and families, too. In 2023, they served 259 parents and 344 children.
Life Coach for Young Moms is the primary program Fisters offers. A network of community partners provides education and tools to improve their clients’ mental health. There’s an emphasis on supporting girls in graduating from high school and entering the job force, all while coaching them in good parenting practices.
Through a staff of mentors, case managers, and life coaches, moms are encouraged in meeting basic educational goals, continuing into vocational programs or college, and then to stable employment. Counselors help moms based on their individual needs, whether it’s meeting educational goals, finding safe and affordable housing, or accessing community services. Their clients’ success stories are heartening.
Erin found Fristers shortly after her daughter was born, as a teenage college dropout. She faced some dire predictions for her future: Only about half of teen parents graduate from high school and as a child of a teen mom, her child had a much higher risk of being incarcerated than most children. She was frightened by what she was told. Though she was hesitant, Erin attended a Fristers meeting and found the safe and encouraging place she needed, exactly when she needed it. Erin is now a college graduate and has stable employment. She and her daughter are thriving.
Karina’s story is familiar to me. She met a boy when she was 16, who gave her the love and attention that she lacked elsewhere. Her parents weren’t very present for her, which left her searching for care and attention—in all the proverbial wrong places. It resulted in her pregnancy.
It’s an age-old story, and it too often culminates in the same way. Girl gets pregnant. Boy gets lost.
I heard similar stories from many of my students. While few had neglectful parents, most all of them dreamed of a special someone who would love them no matter what. Adolescent girls often imagine a boy sweeping them off their feet. A boy who thinks she’s special just as she is and who professes love to her. It’s an age-old story, and it too often culminates in the same way. Girl gets pregnant. Boy gets lost.
Also like my students, Karina found a place where it was safe to share her story without fear of judgement or shame. For my students, that place was the former Margaret Hudson Program in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, where our goal was “Helping Teen Families Succeed”. For Karina, it was Fristers in Santa Ana, California, where she was supported through graduation from high school, finding a job, and enrolling in college. Fristers also has a program for children, called “Kidster”. It’s invaluable to young moms, modeling parenting behaviors and helping kids grow into healthy young people.
Programs like Fristers can help teen moms and their children beat the dire predictions for teen mom failure that is pernicious in our society. With the right support, though, these youth can become strong and accomplished adults. It takes dedicated adults willing to mentor and support, solid organizations with the right focus, and a thriving community of teen moms to offer a welcome to other pregnant girls.
I’ve seen the camaraderie that develops between pregnant and parenting teens. I witness it still today, a decade after I left the classroom, when former students share their stories and continue to support each other through social media. While I have reservations about the value of social media in general, maintaining supportive friendships of those with shared experiences is one of its greatest benefits.
Fristers apparently understands the importance of developing relationships. Girls find others with similar stories and shared experiences for support and companionship at a time in their lives when both are desperately needed but in short supply. Adult mentors also contribute much-needed coaching as young girls transition to motherhood.
Next week, I turn to an organization in my own back yard: Arms of Hope, just down the road from me in Bastrop, Texas. Suggestions for others are still welcome. Keep them coming!
Janice Airhart 