Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, and access means more than a ramp or a screen reader.
For children growing up in institutional homes, having a device and a working internet connection can be the difference between falling behind and catching up.
A huge thank you to Carter Group, LeWagon, AP Advisers,Fortris, Epam and KiFor for the Android pads, laptops and MacBooks that put real tools in real hands. That part is covered.
What we still need is you. Our online instruction team connects volunteers in Japan with students in Manila every week. It takes about two hours. The kids show up. Do you?
Link in bio to join via Peatix.
This week at St. Francis, the children learned about chatting safely online.
We talked about how messages from people we meet online can sometimes be safe, sometimes need caution, and sometimes should be shared with a trusted adult.
During the activity, the children read different message examples and thought about what they should do in each situation. They practiced choosing between “safe,” “be careful,” and “ask an adult,” while also explaining their reasons.
Through this lesson, the children learned the importance of not sharing personal information, being careful with private messages, and asking for help when something feels strange or uncomfortable.
A big thank you to all of our volunteers who helped support the students during the activity. If you are interested in volunteering with us, please contact us at [email protected]
This quote lives in my head every time I open my laptop to check in on our weekly online sessions from Japan and USA to Manila.
"A hundred years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child."
- Forest Witcraft, 1950
The kids log on. We work through English, talk about futures, laugh a little. And somewhere in those two hours we remember that showing up, consistently, is the whole thing. Not the fanfare, not the kuddos. Just being there for a child who remembers that you were.
Two hours a week is enough to be that person for someone.
If you have been thinking about volunteering, or if you just want to support what we are doing, now is a good time to step in. We are 17 years into this work and the village keeps growing because people like you choose to join it.
Come be part of it.
Visit youmewenpo.org or send us a message to find out how you can get involved. You can also reach us at [email protected].
#YouMeWeNPO #YouthEmpowerment #DigitalInclusion #SocialImpact #fortheyouth #alternativecare #CSR
This week at St. Francis, it was so nice to see the children again after Golden Week!
We discussed how to stay positive, have fun, and be safe while playing games online. The children created their own video game concepts and also came up with rules to help keep the game fun and friendly for everyone.
Then, they played a Kahoot quiz using questions they themselves created in the last class. They worked together to find the answers and showed great teamwork throughout the activity.
A big thank you to all of our volunteers who helped support the students during the lesson. If you are interested in volunteering with us, please contact us at [email protected]
Designing Artists Academy (DAA) 2026
Designing Artists Academy (DAA) Summer Camp is a place where institutionalized children can explore creativity through hands-on art activities.
Through drawing, making, and creating together, kids can discover new interests and build confidence in a warm space.
🗓️ Date: 8/22–24
📍 Location: Yamanakako Rinkan Ryou
More information will be shared soon. Stay tuned!
We are also looking for volunteer teachers to support this year’s DAA.
DAAサマーキャンプは、施設に住む子どもたちが体験型アート活動を通して、自由に表現し創造力を育む場所です。
描いたり作ったりする時間を通して、新しい興味や自信に出会える場を届けます。
🗓️ 日程: 8/22–24
📍 場所: 山中湖林間寮
今後、詳細を少しずつお知らせしていきます。ぜひチェックしてください！
今年のDAAを一緒に支えてくださるボランティア講師も募集しています。
Interested? Please contact us at / ご興味のある方はこちらまで
[email protected] 💙
If you were no longer here, who would you trust with your children?
And what would you hope for them?
That question is at the heart of everything we do at YouMeWe.
The children we support have lost both parents. They are growing up in institutional homes, without the people who would have been their biggest champions. So our volunteers and mentors try to step into that role. They show up consistently, offer real guidance, and give these kids the kind of steady, caring presence their parents would have wanted for them.
It takes a village to raise a child. We have been building that village for 17 years, and there is always room for more people in it.
If you want to be part of something that genuinely matters, we would love to have you. Whether you can volunteer, donate, or simply spread the word, every bit of support reaches a child who deserves to know someone cares.
Visit youmewenpo.org or send us a message to find out how you can get involved.
We asked the kids what they think of our weekly computer classes.
Their answer? "It's when we get to see our friends and play on the computers."
Honestly, I wasn't expecting that. But it made complete sense the moment they said it.
These kids all live in the same facility, but they're split across different group homes and floors. They don't just run into each other. So when class time comes around, it's not just a lesson. It's their version of a club meeting.
The learning matters. But so does this. The chance to sit next to a friend, share a screen, laugh at something together. That's real too.
Digital access isn't only about skills. Sometimes it's just about being able to show up in the same room.
#YouMeWeNPO #DigitalInclusion #YouthEmpowerment #SocialImpact #Community
Some children enter care carrying their belongings in garbage bags. No child should have to feel that their life can be packed away like that.
Because of Goodera’s generous support, these children now have something of their own, a new bag to carry their things with dignity, comfort, and a sense of self during a hard transition.
This is more than a backpack. It says, you matter, your things matter, and your future matters.
Thank you, Goodera, for helping make this transition a little gentler for the children in our care.
施設に入る子どもたちの中には、持ち物をゴミ袋に入れて移動しなければならない子もいます。その経験が、どれほど心に残るかと思うと胸が痛みます。
Gooderaの温かいご支援により、子どもたちは自分自身の新しいバッグを持てるようになりました。大変な移行の中で、少しでも尊厳と安心、自分らしさを感じられるように。
これはただのバッグではありません。あなたは大切な存在だというメッセージです。
Gooderaの皆さま、本当にありがとうございます。
#YouMeWeNPO #Goodera #ChildrenInCare #DignityMatters #YouthSupport See less
Sometimes the starting point is simple: “What do you love?”
For one student, that opened the door to Pokémon, curiosity, and a bigger conversation about programming. When young people can begin with what already excites them, learning feels possible, personal, and real.
So much of daily life is built through code. Our job is to help make that connection clear, and help each child see that their interests can lead somewhere meaningful.
#YouMeWeNPO #YouthEmpowerment #DigitalInclusion #Programming #fortheyouth See less
Kids are kids. Screens get cracked, devices get dropped. It happens.
But a broken screen doesn't mean a broken connection to the world. When a laptop goes down, we replace it. Fast. Because the weekly classes from Japan to Manila don't wait, and neither do the kids counting on them.
These devices are how our youth step into job interviews, practice English, and imagine a future beyond the walls of institutional care. Keeping that door open is exactly what You, Me, and We is about.
#YouMeWeNPO #DigitalInclusion #YouthEmpowerment #SocialImpact #fortheyouth See less
Showing up every week matters.
What starts with one child often grows. Now siblings from the same home are joining too, sharing lessons and time together that we hope stay with them long after they leave care.
We want these sessions to become part of their toolkit for life, something they can return to again and again.
#YouMeWeNPO #YouthEmpowerment #AlternativeCare #EducationSupport #fortheyouth
We held Day 1 of our Mentor training for the FHE Fostering Higher Education by International Foster Care Alliance
If you wish to be a mentor with us, there is an 8 hour training course which you can join live or self directed in order to be approved to mentor aged out youth we work with.
https://youtu.be/ec0AU-qqKhE
A message to supportive adults... Thank you for being a supportive adult for a young person transtioning from foster care.
your role is may be more important than you — or the youth — knows.
Our experience at FosterClub tells us having committed and reliable supportive adults are the number one indicator of success for young person transitioning from foster care.
Strengthen your role by:
■ Read the information in this toolkit and visit www.fosterclub.org for more tools to help youth prepare for life after foster care.
■ Visit www.fosteringconnections.org to learn more about the Fostering Connections Act.
■ Help the youth identify their strengths AND needs.
■ Make it clear how you are willing to support the youth.
■ Help keep the youth on track.
■ Celebrate success.
■ Remember that it’s the youth’s life — and it’s their transition plan. Mentor away, but keep in mind that ultimately, they will be the ones living out the plan.
Empower Village Coaching:
https://youmewenpo.org/empowervillage
What’s a Permanency Pact?
What’s a Permanency Pact? A pledge by a supportive adult to provide specific supports to a young person in foster care with a goal of establishing a lifelong, kin-like relationship.
https://youmewenpo.org/empowervillage
At YouMeWe we believe every young person deserves support and the chance to build their future.
Our Fostering Higher Education (FHE) program supports youth aging out of foster care as they work toward higher education. This post gives a simple overview of what FHE is and why it matters.
Thank you for learning more about FHE with us
