Since 2012, The Future Foundation has been Ward 8’s only trauma-informed drop-in center for teens. In our Stay Woke D.C. program, youth organizers learn a social-emotional approach to achieving social justice. We are seeking your financial support to supplement Stay Woke D.C.'s response to the COVID-19 epidemic and the #GeorgeFloyd uprisings. Our youth organizers have already built trust with their neighbors. They are best equipped to reach residents who do not have cell phones, computers, or internet access in these tumultuous times. They are also familiar with the children that may need to be supervised while their parents take to the streets to protest or simply get to their essential job. Our community is literally separated from main city services by the Anacostia River. This further exacerbates the dangers we face as we navigate the clear and present dangers of a pandemic, coupled with racial tension, and an active National Guard presence. We need access to reliable childcare, internet, food, and emotionally safe spaces. With your help, out-of-school teenagers and out-of-work young adults who can’t take the frontlines can continue by organizing a community care collective within their public housing dwellings. A collective is managed by out-of-work youth (18-24) and provides the type of rapid response our community needs.