“This place to me really helps me calm down, and it truly makes my life less stressful. I think that if Jump-Start was not a part of my life, I would be going crazy. We get to have a lot of fun, and at the same time, we are learning things about life, and not even realizing it. In Jump-Start, the sun revolves around us.”
- Elise Padilla, teen participant, SAMMinistries
SAMMinistries Transitional Home is a living and learning center providing homeless families with rent-free residence for up to two years. The facility can serve up to 40 families while they become self-sufficient. In 2004, in collaboration with Urban Ministries and Jump-Start Performance Co., SAMMinistries started an after-school program for middle and high school students. The program serves a mix of young people, from ages 12 to 17, with little or no experience in arts practices. The Jump-Start Teen Program seeks to build self-confidence through performing arts events and socialize teens through collaboration on visual arts projects. The program encourages students to have open dialog and express their opinions. A strong sense of empowerment helps students to speak their minds and understand that their voices are important. The teens create individual and group art projects on a small and large scale. Projects have included an indoor mural in the teen room, self-portrait photography art installations with their own personal writings and various community performance projects such as poetry readings, dance, and theater presented to the residents and staff of the facility.
Over time, the program helps the teens gain an inner perspective about themselves and openness to socialization. The students build a lasting positive point of view, a sense of leadership and set goals for the future. Many families move on and new teens are constantly coming into the program. The Teen Program continues as a stabilizing factor in the residence facility.
