STREETLIGHTUSA - TOHONO OODHAM 2017.PDF

Created: 05/03/2017 • Last updated: 05/04/2017
General information
Organization StreetLightUSA
Contact First name Megan
Contact Last name Jefferies
Contact e-mail megan@streetlightusa.org
Contact phone number 623.435.0900
Address
Street PO Box 6178
City Peoria
State AZ
ZIP Code 85385
From what tribe is the Tohono O’odham Nation
organization requesting the
grant?
Total grant amount request 50000
1 / 1



May 8, 2017
Chairman Edward Manuel
Tohono O’odham Nation
P.O. Box 837
Sells Arizona 85634
ATTN: Doreen McPaul
Dear Chairman Manuel:
Thank you for opportunity to introduce StreetLightUSA to you for your review and consideration of a
grant in the amount of $50,000 to support our Emergency Shelter and Triage Program. If funded, we
shall enter into an agreement with Maricopa County which will accept the grant funding on our behalf.
This would be our first-ever grant from the Tohono O’odham Nation or any other tribe.
Summary of Mission and History
StreetLightUSA’s mission is to transition adolescent girls from Trauma to Triumph through residential
care and comprehensive services for health and well-being, education, life skills, career preparation and
assistance with legal needs.
History: StreetLightUSA (SLUSA) was established in 2009 as a safe haven for sexually exploited and
trafficked girls in response to a horrific kidnapping and trafficking incident involving a Phoenix teen.
The impact catalyzed sufficient support from the community to raise $2.5 million for the establishment
of a nonprofit and purchase a site for a residential to carry out its mission. Upon securing a foster care
group home license, the first child arrived at SLUSA in April, 2011. In 2016 we applied for and
obtained a counseling license. With two full time therapists on staff we now provide 24-7 therapeutic
services to clients that reside on campus and those that are able to remain in their homes. Our counseling
services are also available to the families of the girls in our care. To date, we have served more than 825
unique youth and provided an array of comprehensive services in areas of crisis intervention and
stabilization, health and wellness care, education and, life skills training.
Need or Problem Addressed by StreetLightUSA
StreetLightUSA addresses the incredible devastation in all life areas sustained by girls traumatized
through repeated physical and sexual violations. All abuse generates long-term consequences for the
victims; however, the trafficking component of being sold for sex magnifies the intense damage to body,
soul and spirit. A child’s cognitive development is often stopped. Without rescue and proper trauma-
informed care, victims are likely to experience the following: seven-year life expectancy their first
trauma experience (death by homicide, STIs, suicide, serious mental illness), substance abuse issues,
StreetLightUSA · www.streetlightusa.org · PO Box 6178 · Peoria, AZ 85385 · 623-435-0900 · TDD:711
StreetLightUSA® is a non-profit charitable organization. Tax ID 26-4359672

chronic physical and mental health problems and on-going poverty. The trauma manifestations include:
PTSD, depression, anxiety, self-harm, rage, dissociative disorders and Stockholm Syndrome.
Many of the girls at StreetLightUSA come from abusive and dysfunctional homes and were removed
from their home by child protective and/or social services or they may have run away. Or, they are
considered "throwaway" children that were kicked out of their homes and left to fend for themselves on
the streets. Within 48 hours, one-third of these girls are seduced into formal trafficking and of the others
engage in "survival sex" to gain food, a place to sleep, protection or a shower. By the time they are
picked up by a first responder or end up in the system, they have experienced significant trauma.
Child sex trafficking is a growing problem for US children. More than 300,000 are estimated as current
victims with hundreds of thousands more at high-risk for this crime against minors. In the Phoenix,
Arizona area, estimates indicate that between 1,200-5,000 youth are currently in trafficking situations.
This is a conservative estimate: Arizona has more than 19,000 youth in foster care settings with
increasing totals each year, and 60-90% of foster children are likely candidates for trafficking
victimization.
Specific Project for the Grant Request
This grant request for $50,000 will support for our Shelter and Triage Program for Homeless,
Exploited Children - Crisis Intervention and Stabilization. Population served is girls, age 11-17,
with a history of or at risk for sex trafficking, and those that have been sexual exploited and/or
physically abused. These children require the most basic of needs and care such as a: safe shelter, food,
and clothing and immediate counseling and stabilization. The trauma and fear demonstrated by these
exploited and abused children is overwhelming and more complex than law enforcement organizations
are able to manage. These young girls, given their circumstances, have little or no trust in adults, and in
most cases, have never known a safe, caring home. Our requested funding will address the child’s most
pressing, immediate problem once they are removed from the streets, which is the availability of a
comprehensive safe haven with highly trained staff and the availability of 24/7 counseling for the first,
critical 72 hours.
These children have survived life’s dark side, StreetLightUSA and its staff offers them a safe haven,
kindness and chance for a new and better life. With the funds from this grant opportunity, these girls will
have the tools to travel the path from trauma to triumph. This project addresses the priority areas of 1)
Child Advocacy and also 2) Health Care of those we serve.
Goals and Objectives supported by grant
Too often a child is caught in “limbo” as the various systems work to determine responsibility. This is a
very dangerous time and too often a frightened child will do what she knows best – run. We must offer
her a safe place so that she does not run back to familiar territory. The first 72 hours is the critical time
frame needed to determine whether or not the child is in custody of Arizona’s Department of Child
Safety and to help establish a safety net going forward. Our objective is to respond to the emotional and
physical needs of the children we serve.
S t r e e t L i g h t U S A - P a g e 2 | 4

Objectives:
1. Crisis intervention and counseling within the first 72 hours. Preparation for next step,
2. Provide basic services from housing and medical care to basic hygiene, trauma informed therapies
and other services as needed;
3. Case management and continued programming and therapies.
Budget
STREETLIGHTUSA - Shelter & Triage
Additional info TOTAL
Salaries
Cottage and Facilities Staff
Residential OPS Director .20 FTE $11,000.00
Crisis Therapist 1 FTE $65,000.00
Case Manager .25 FTE $8,750.00
Direct Care Staff 2 and 3 5 FTE $150,176.00
Direct Care Staff 1 8 FTE $185,640.00
Direct Care Staff 1 - Crisis Support (floater) 1 FTE $23,400.00
Direct Care Staff Support .25 FTE (database and case mgmt) $7,800.00
Total Personnel $451,766.00
Fringe for Personnel 19% of total $78,245.04
Direct Expenses
Medical Services $80,000.00
Emergency Clothing $10,000.00
Food $50,000.00
Welcome/Coping baskets $6,000.00
Program Operations
office supplies and expense $1,200.00
Electronic records K-care 20% of total $1,200.00
Vehicles
auto fuel--mileage (medical and legal
20% of total for 1 year $2,000.00
appointments)
Total $680,411.04
Additional Funding
This request is for $50,000 in support of the Shelter and Triage Program budget. This proposed program
is a big piece of our budget. Additional confirmed and potential institutional funders include:
S t r e e t L i g h t U S A - P a g e 3 | 4

Trends Charities - $100,000 confirmed
Office of Victims of Crime - $75,000 via subgrant to International Rescue Committee - confirmed
Belleview Heights Foundation - $40,000 confirmed
Desert Schools Federal Credit Union - $10,000 confirmed
Seasons for Sharing $5,000 - confirmed
City of Peoria - $7,500 - confirmed
Frys Food Stores - $2,000 - confirmed
Governor's Office of Youth, Faith, Family - $50,000 - pending
City of Phoenix - $30,000 - pending
Board of Visitors - $65,000 pending
Mary Kay Foundation - $20,000 pending
Arizona Criminal Justice Commission - $13,300 - pending
Fiesta Bowl Charities - $10,000
Portions of this budget are also supported by our contract with the Arizona Department of Child Safety.
It is important to note that the DCS contractual support only applies to children that are in Arizona’s
foster care system. There are several historical supporters to which we have not yet applied this year and
we also solicit support from the community for this program.
Evaluation
StreetLightUSA’s Emergency Shelter and Triage program is evaluated by measuring the number of
victims requesting services and receiving services. Each StreetLightUSA client completes a survey upon
arrival and upon discharge that indicates their knowledge and understanding of violence, abuse and
neglect and its effect on their life, a self report of their anxiety level and sense of well-being, their
understanding of the effects of trauma and victimization and coping skills, and satisfaction with the
program. Also, the program tracks the number and percentage of children who demonstrate improved
emotional/behavioral status from intake to discharge, number and percentage of children that participate
in group and individual services, and also specific statistics about the services provided to the child.
Follow-up
Designated Contact: Megan Jefferies, Director of Fund Development, megan@streetlightusa.org,
623.435.0900 ext. 8146, 8380 W. Emile Zola Ave., Unit#6178, Peoria, AZ 85381-9998, fax: 623-435-
0910.
Alternate Contact: Lea Benson, President & CEO, lea@streetlightusa.org, 623.435.0900 ext. 8102, 8380
W. Emile Zola Ave., Unit#6178, Peoria, AZ 85381-9998, fax: 623-435-0910.
Thank you for the opportunity to submit this request. We look forward to a favorable response.
Sincerely,
Megan Jefferies
Director of Fund Development
S t r e e t L i g h t U S A - P a g e 4 | 4

TRAUMA TO TRIUMPH
CRISIS INTERVENTION & Stabilization
StreetLightUSA
please is an Arizona
Qualified
Foster Care
Organization
participate: (QFCO)
learn more:
NEXT STEPS www.SLusaTaxCredit.org
q Visit Our
learn
Website
q Explore IRS Tax Exempt
volunteer Opportunities
501(c)(3) Non-Profit
q Make a Donation Tax ID 26-4359672
give Online
q Text @SLUSA to 52014
623.435.0900
PO Box 6178 Peoria, AZ 85385
please visit website for next steps! www.StreetLightUSA.org

WHY WE DO
There is no trust more sacred than the one
We cannot knowingly permit
the world holds with children. There is no
the sexual exploitation of duty more important than ensuring that
young girls in our communities. their rights are respected, that their welfare
is protected, that their lives are free from fear
and want, and that they grow up in peace.
-– Kofi Annan
“…loose the bonds of wickedness,...
let the oppressed go free,...
Every two minutes a It’s no longer just street divide your bread with the hungry,...
child is forced to corners in bad neighborhoods.
sell her body for the It can start on the internet When you see the naked...cover [them]...”
basic needs of life. in ANY neighborhood. Isaiah 58:6-7
The average age of Young female runaways, are
a child forced into sex often trafficked within 48
trafficking is 12-14. hours of being on the street.
References can be found at www.StreetLightUSA.org
WHAT WE DO
We build foundations for lasting life change
ONE GIRL AT A TIME
A basic instinct shared by victims
of child sex trafficking is "fight or flight."
She runs from her emotions of fear,
disappointment, shame, deceit, loss,
addiction and loneliness; a child ill-equipped
to cope with the complex trauma
she has experienced.
StreetLightUSA helps girls
find their “fight” through multi-layered
crisis intervention programs.
First we address her needs,
including medical, physical, spiritual, and
emotional. Once she is stabilized and
feeling a sense of trust and safety,
we begin to help her
“...Slowly at first, cautiously learning to trust, re-write her story,
I began to take control of my life and build my future.” giving her a second
K.Q., Program Alumna chance at life.