ACCOUNT. THOSE STORIES NOW ON MATTER OF FACT. THE FOSTER CARE SYSTEM IS STRAINED. NEARLY 400,000 KIDS ARE IN FOSTER CARE, AND ADVOCATES SAY THERE’S A CRITICAL SHORTAGE OF LICENSED HOMES FOR THEM TO MOVE INTO. THAT STRAIN MEANS THAT WHEN KIDS TURN 18, THEY’RE OFTEN ON THEIR OWN, FACING AN INCREASED RISK OF HOMELESSNESS AND INCARCERATION IN COLORADO, ABOUT A THIRD OF YOUNG PEOPLE WHO AGE OUT OF THE PROGRAM ARE HOMELESS WITHIN THREE YEARS, AND THAT HAS VOLUNTEERS AND NONPROFITS STEPPING IN TO FILL THE CARE GAP. OUR CORRESPONDENT LAURA CHAVEZ TRAVELED TO BOULDER COUNTY, WHERE ONE YOUNG WOMAN AND HER MENTOR ARE WORKING TO BEAT THE ODDS. AND THIS ONE’S MY FAVORITE CHILDHOOD PICTURE. 22 YEAR OLD AMBROSHA STILLER DOESN’T HAVE A LOT LEFT FROM HER CHILDHOOD. I THINK I HAVE ONE SHIRT THAT SURVIVED, AND IT WAS GIVEN TO ME BY ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS. ACTUALLY, IN EIGHTH GRADE, SHE ENTERED FOSTER CARE DUE TO NEGLECT IN HER HOME CONNECTED TO HER PARENTS DRUG ADDICTIONS. NOW SHE’S STRUGGLES TO REMEMBER THE HAPPY OR EVEN STABLE TIMES. HOW MANY PLACES DO YOU THINK YOU’VE LIVED ALTOGETHER? I WOULD SAY MORE THAN 15. BUT BELOW 25. EVERY TIME I WOULD GO TO SOMEBODY ELSE’S HOUSE, I WOULD SHOW UP WITH LIKE A TRASH BAG FULL OF THINGS. AS HARD AS THAT WAS, AMBROSHA TOOK COMFORT IN KNOWING THERE WAS A SAFETY NET THROUGH FOSTER CARE, WHICH PROVIDES THINGS LIKE MEDICAL COVERAGE, SOCIAL SERVICES, AND AID TO FOSTER FAMILIES FOR BASIC NEEDS. BUT ALL THAT WOULD END AT 18. I WASN’T EVER PREPARED FOR, LIKE THE DAY AFTER 18 IS HOW I’LL SAY IT. AMBROSHA SPENT HER 18TH BIRTHDAY IN A COURTHOUSE. I DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT PAYING BILLS OR SIGNING A LEASE OR, YOU KNOW, FIGURING OUT A WAY TO FIND A REAL JOB OR SAVE MONEY LIKE I DID NOT HAVE ANY CLUE OF WHAT ANY OF THAT MEANT. AND IT WAS REALLY KIND OF FRUSTRATING TO KNOW THAT, LIKE AFTER I LEFT THAT COURTROOM AND THEIR HANDS WERE CLEAN AND THEY DIDN’T HAVE TO, LIKE, PROVIDE ME ANY MORE RESOURCES, IN MY MIND, I WAS STILL A CHILD, AND THAT WAS LIKE THE SCARIEST DAY OF MY LIFE. EVERY YEAR, ABOUT 20,000 PEOPLE AGE OUT OF FOSTER CARE. THESE YOUNG ADULTS EXPERIENCE A HIGHER RATE OF HOMELESSNESS, MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES, AND INCARCERATION. AMBROSHA WORKED HARD TO AVOID ALL THAT. SHE PLANS TO GRADUATE, WAIT, COLLEGE IN THE FALL, AND FOUND HER PROFESSIONAL PASSION IN HER JOB AS AN ACTIVITIES ASSISTANT AT A NURSING HOME. BUT EVEN SHE WILL TELL YOU SHE DIDN’T DO IT ALONE. BEVERLY. I WOULD CONSIDER HER MY MENTOR. FOSTER YOUTH CARRY A BURDEN THAT MOST PEOPLE DON’T CARRY. BEVERLY MCKELVEY, A FORMER TEACHER, IS THE PRESIDENT OF HELPING HANDS. THEREAFTER, FOSTER CARE, A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT HELPS PEOPLE AS THEY AGE OUT OF THE FOSTER CARE PROGRAM. THE FIRST TIME I MET AMBROSHA, I PICKED HER UP AT HER FOSTER HOME, AND AS WE WERE DRIVING THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOOD, WHICH WAS JUST A REGULAR NEIGHBORHOOD, SHE SAID, LOOK AROUND. I OBVIOUSLY DON’T BELONG HERE. AND THAT’S A SELF-CONFIDENCE THING. SHE FELT LIKE LIKE SHE DIDN’T EVEN DESERVE A HOME. A LOT OF THE YOUTH THAT WE SERVE FEEL THAT THEY DON’T DESERVE ANYTHING BETTER, AND THEY HAVE NOBODY THERE TO SAY, THIS IS HOW YOU FILL OUT A FAFSA FORM, OR THIS IS HOW YOU ARRANGE A DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENT, OR THIS IS HOW YOU ARRANGE AN APPOINTMENT TO GET YOUR DRIVER’S LICENSE TEST. THEY DON’T HAVE THE PARENT TO DO THAT THERE. AFTER FOSTER CARE WORKS WITH THE COUNTY AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS LIKE TOGETHER FOR A COLORADO BASED NONPROFIT FOCUSED ON ENDING YOUTH HOMELESSNESS. I THINK THERE’S SOME YOUNG PEOPLE THAT ARE RARIN AND READY TO GO. CLAIRE CRONIN IS THE DIRECTOR OF BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS AT TOGETHER, BUT THEN I THINK THERE’S OTHER PEOPLE WHERE IT’S REALLY SCARY TO HAVE TO THINK ABOUT MOVING OUT INTO THE WORLD TO HAVING YOUR OWN PLACE TO REALLY KIND OF BE ALONE IN SOME SENSES, TOGETHER GIVES YOUNG PEOPLE A CHANCE TO MOVE AT THEIR OWN PACE BY PROVIDING A SAFE PLACE TO LIVE. PRIVATE COUNSELING, CAREER ADVICE AND MUCH MORE. THERE’S KIND OF THESE LIKE SMALL NUANCES THAT WE PICK UP IN LIFE THAT FOSTER CARE YOUTH DON’T GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF LEARN ON, AND SO THEY HAVE TO LEARN THEM ON THE FLY, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY’RE EXITING FOSTER CARE, WHICH IS REALLY DIFFICULT. NUANCES AMBROSHA STILL STRUGGLES WITH. I WISH I WAS TAUGHT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CREDIT CARD AND A DEBIT CARD, BECAUSE STILL, LIKE I AM SO CONFUSED, BUT SHE’S LEARNING WITH THE HELP OF A NEW SUPPORT SYSTEM, 22 YEAR OLD AMBROSHA IS TALKING TO 17 YEAR OLD AMBROSHA. WHAT ARE YOU GONNA TELL HER? I WOULD TELL 17 YEAR OLD ME LIKE YOU GOT THIS. LIKE YOU MADE IT THIS FAR. LIKE, JUST KEEP GOING. YOU’RE ALMOST THERE. GO