Youth Villages is a private, nonprofit organization that serves emotionally troubled, at-risk children and their families through a continuum of services, including; residential treatment, intensive in home services, group homes, therapeutic foster care, special needs, adoption, crisis services, mentoring, and transitional living support known as LifeSet. The primary goal for each child in all of our programs is to find permanency, either returning home with biological parents, finding a loving and nurturing foster/adoptive home, or in case of an older child, transitioning successfully into the community. 

Youth Villages has impacted the lives of more than 8,000 children from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022. With offices in Nashville, Columbia, Cookeville, Clarksville, and Dickson, they serve the entire Middle Tennessee area. 

“With more than 30 years of successful assistance to Middle Tennessee, Youth Villages is a proven leader in delivering health and human services to our region’s children and families," Assistant Director of Development and Communication Lyndsay Wilkinson said. "Sixteen years of data shows that more than 85 percent of Youth Villages’ children continue to be successful one year after discharge from our programs.”

The organization is also very active during the holidays with their annual Holiday Heroes campaign.

“Each child in Youth Villages’ care fills out a wish list of three gifts that they hope to receive for the holidays," Wilkinson said. "Individual and corporate volunteers sign up to fulfill a wish list for a child or a sibling group and shop for the items and deliver them to Youth Villages the first week of December. This year, Youth Villages expects to serve 2,500 local children, families, and young people during the holidays. For many of these families, these are the only gifts they will receive during the holiday season. Holiday Heroes is the largest volunteer opportunity that Youth Villages has throughout the year and is vital to ensure the youth we serve the best quality of care during the holidays.”

Holiday Heroes needs volunteers to either sign up to shop for a child or sibling group or financially donate to fulfill a wish list for a child or family. Additionally there is a huge and urgent need for financial support to fund the wish lists for the children who come to Youth Villages just days before the holiday break. At this point, funds raised in December are used for
Youth Villages employees to buy gifts for these families. 

Holiday Heroes has impacted the lives of Middle Tennessee children for the last 17 years. The program provides more than just gifts to these children and young people during the holidays. It also provides hope. This initiative reminds these children that while so many other people in their lives have been unable to provide for them, there are people in the community who care about their well being. Holiday Heroes gives the kids the opportunity to let go of their everyday worries and just “be a kid.” Here are some quotes from the youth receiving gifts:

“Thank you for my bike. I love it and I will ride it a lot! Thank you for the clothes too. I really needed a jacket, and I am wearing it as I write this," 10-year-old boy in Intercept, intensive in -home services for children and families.

“I can’t thank you enough for helping me during the most stressful time of my life. I was in between housing during the holidays and the thing that gave me the most hope was receiving my gifts!” 18-year-old girl who transitioned from foster care to independent living in LifeSet program.

“Thank you so much. I did not get anything for Christmas last year, but this Christmas, I got everything I dreamed of. Thank you for the time you took to buy my gifts.” 14-year-old in Therapeutic Foster Care. 

Belle Meade resident, Lisa Small, became involved with Youth Villages when asked to serve on its newly established Advisory Board of Middle Tennessee over 20 years ago. 

“I was impressed not only by the dedication of its staff but by the incredible short and long term success that Youth Villages had in stabilizing many families and rescuing children from abusive or emotionally difficult lives," Small said. "My respect for this organization has grown over the years as it reached out to help more foster and adoptive families navigate the process as well as its work with those aging out of the foster care system as they learned to become independent, productive citizens. Once I called Youth Villages Nashville’s best kept secret. Finally it is getting the recognition it deserves, not just in Nashville or even in our state, but now throughout the country.”

The most significant ongoing needs for the current year are:

For more information , visit www.youthvillages.org or contact Rae.Ryan@youthvillages.org.

Stroll Belle Meade is delighted to spotlight this special nonprofit Youth Villages. We are so proud of Lyndsay Wilkinson, Assistant Director of Communications and Development, and our Belle Meade resident, Lisa Small, for truly Making A Difference.