Frequently Asked Questions
Where do you find the kids?
Conversations. Leaders in the community who already know these families, and the people who run programs and see which kids are missing from them. A coach, a teacher, a neighbor, a parent at the same school.
No marketing and no social media campaigns. Almost every kid Youth Experience Sponsorship has backed arrived through a person who already knew them.
Are you only in Marin?
YES is based in Marin and that is where nearly all of its kids are today. Nothing in the model is county specific, and requests have started to come in from neighboring counties.
Are you just a pass-through for the money?
No. Every request is vetted before it is funded. YES checks that the partner organization is legitimate, pays that organization directly rather than handing money to a family, and then verifies with the partner that the kid actually took part.
So what does YES actually do?
It runs no programs of its own. The programs already exist and they are already good. YES is the part that was missing: the thing that clears the cost fast enough that a kid who is ready now can go now.
Who decides which kids get funded?
An awards committee, not one person, and it holds a seat for the community. It looks first at the kid’s own motivation. Not every kid is funded.
How do you measure impact?
By what can honestly be counted: how many kids heard yes, how many experiences were completed, how many partner programs took part. YES does not claim to know which experience changes which life, because nobody does.
How does a kid apply?
A kid names the thing they want to do, and says why it matters to them. That is the application.
How can I help?
Tell someone. Introduce Mike to a family who needs this, to someone who runs a program, or to someone who gives to youth. Or fund it directly.