Former Foster Youth of LA

A Sense of Home strives to prevent homelessness by creating first-ever homes and a community for youth aging out of foster care. Proving Alumni access to ongoing resource navigation and support including the ASOH Educational Scholarship.

50% of those struggling with homelessness are former foster youth. The homeless crisis can only end through prevention.

Most ASOH participants are between 18-24 years old (41% are working, 24% are in school, 17% are working and in school, 13% are the primary caregiver)
96% are BIPOC (31% are Latinx, 54% are Black, 4% are Asian, and 3% are Native American/Alaskan native)
24% identify as LGBTQIA+

85% are young women
68% have children or are the guardians of their younger sibling(s), over 92% of those who have children are single mothers
The majority are from central and South L.A.

The Home Creation

ASOH strives to create a physical home that is the embodiment of the dreams and unique personality of each recipient (and their family) to transform their experience of scarcity to one of comfort and care. Empty walls, floors, and rooms, once unlivable, are transformed into fully-furnished, functional, and beautiful homes in less than two hours by a team of volunteers.

ASOH installs 330 items in each home to ensure optimal well being and a fully functional home.

Each item is carefully selected and designed to create a unique and inspired home environment for each applicant. Based on ASOH’s seamless color coding system that makes for the fastest installation known to exist, volunteers create the homes in only 90 minutes. Donate your gently used items or please shop for our most needed items..

How It Works

ASOH partners with LA County and DCFS to advance Permanent Supportive Housing.

ASOH is the only partner agency with DCFS that refers former foster youth for vouchers and the only agency that DCFS turns to create homes for former foster youth. ASOH secures housing vouchers for former foster youth and once TAY youth receive the keys to their apartment, ASOH turns their empty space into functioning and inspired homes. ASOH connects TAY youth to additional services within our expansive Resource Network and supports them in onboarding to these programs. Resource Network opportunities include financial literacy training, educational scholarships, therapy, trauma informed healing, referrals for job placement, and job training.

ASOH welcomes recipients to pay it forward in supporting their peers in having their homes created.

The Pay it Forward Alumna (PIFA) Community enjoys special events where they gather to learn about additional resources, receive custom gifts and wishes, and most importantly connect to the community. Pay it Forward Alumna are invited to become Peer Mentors. They too receive their own mentors and the cycle of support continues as each individual flourishes.

Unique and Innovative Supportive Services

All Alumni of ASOH are invited to pay-it-forward, empowering individual creativity and collective creativity that fosters an environment that serves to Illuminate and help others actualize their potential.

Ongoing Resource Navigation
ASOH Educational Scholarship
Pay-It-Forward Ambassadors (PIFA) Program- provides peer to peer mentorship and a supportive community
ASOH Scholarship Program
Access to monthly micro grants

Financial Literacy Trainings
Empowerment Workshops
Annual Events for Alumni and PIFA
No “aging-out” of services
Resources for Parents

Supporting Mothers and Children

Breaking the Cycle of Poverty

85% of those ASOH serves are young women and 68% have children of their own.
ASOH provides all essential items to ensure children of recipients with open cases have everything they need to comply with DCFS guidelines.
ASOH provides kids and babies with clothes, shoes, books, toys, school supplies and more.
ASOH connects both mothers and their children to ongoing services.

ASOH does not have an age limit.

ASOH supports any former foster youth in creating their first-ever home. Harnessing beautifully donated furniture and home goods, volunteers create inspiring homes in only 90 minutes. ASOH introduces recipients to a community of care and access to ongoing resources. Alumni achieve a sustainable tenancy, dignity, self-worth & a foundation from which they can thrive.

Applicants must be working or going to school (or a combination of work and school) for at least 30 hours per week. Should an applicant not qualify we will refer the individual to programs to ensure they do meet our requirements.

When an applicant does not yet have a home, we help them secure housing vouchers through county programs and/ or introduce them to a budding that is specifically accepting ASOH recipients.

Why Home is Especially Important for Former Foster Youth

While homelessness is an obstacle a young person exiting foster care is challenged with, their entire lives have revolved around housing insecurity. For most young people who enter foster care, their parents’ challenges with housing or what happened in the “home” is why they entered the system.
These young people endured deplorable living conditions, mostly due to poverty and/or mental illness, experienced by their parents.
These conditions may involve infestations, dangerous animals, an absence of running water, heat, or bedding, or a single one-bedroom apartment occupied by 20+ individuals from multiple families.
Housing issues may also involve co-located drug labs or gang territory, criminal activity involving deadly weapons, and all-night partying so extensive that children are unable to sleep.
For most young people who entered and endured foster care, “home” is neither safe nor stable.
These challenges often follow young people in the form of trauma and future difficulty obtaining housing.
Often the most affordable housing may return the young person to the same neighborhood they once fled.
Alternatively, even if housing is secured, furnishing the apartment, making it a home, and having the requisite resources to make it a lasting place to live is all but impossible.
With these challenges so prevalent, A Sense of Home has become the gold standard for giving our kids the homes they truly deserve once and for all.

© 2025 Copyright A Sense of Home,
A tax exempt charitable organization qualified under
Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law.
Tax ID# 47-3814056.

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Former Foster Youth of LA - A Sense of Home