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Yellowstone County Empowering Youth Program
 Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch was awarded a $750,000 grant for a three-year federal program called the Communities Empowering Youth (CEY) Grant from the Administration for Children and Families.
The project was awarded to Yellowstone Boys & Girls Ranch to work with agencies in Yellowstone County who work with at-risk youth. Mary Hernandez was hired as the grant director and works directly with the non-profit organizations providing training that help build capacity within each organization. Some areas of focus are program development, leadership development, community engagement, and organizational development.
The goal of this grant is to help these organizations partner with others in the community and provide a collaboration of efforts that will promote a healthy environment. The capacity of their collaboration will help meet the needs of at-risk youth.
“We just really believe there are opportunities for expanding and improving services to children in Yellowstone County,” said Glenn McFarlane, YBGR CEO, “We really want to focus on being partners and growing those partnerships. Somebody’s got to take the lead on it, so we just said ‘let’s go for it,’”
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Community Service & Volunteerism
 Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch encourages volunteer participation by our staff and youth to benefit the communities where they live.
In several Montana communities staff are involved in events such as the Relay for Life (American Cancer Society). In addition to having teams walk the relay event, staff have developed unique and creative ways to raise funds for the American Cancer Society, including an annual silent auction, car wash, ice cream social, and chili feed. Many staff or their family members are cancer survivors, so we cheer for one another in a personal way.
We also encourage our youth (with staff) to participate in community service projects such as washing dogs and cleaning cages for local animal shelters, pulling weeds and picking up trash at community parks, schools and museums, organizing clothing at Family Services, serving food at the Rescue Mission, and playing bingo, along with other activities with the elderly in nursing homes.
We believe volunteerism promotes leadership, citizenship, and develops a global view with participants. By encouraging our staff and youth to volunteer and participate in community service projects, we are able to impact every community in a positive way.
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A round up is underway to identify the SPURS Team.
