Youth
Youth · Southern Alberta
Every teen needs a place to belong. And someone who believes in them.
Perhaps you remember how hard the teen years were. Today’s young people face the same questions with fewer safe places to ask them. In Lethbridge, Brooks and Cardston, Bridges of Hope youth programs give teens a place to belong, adults who care, and a reason to aim higher.
Three programs. One purpose.
Wherever a teen is, someone is waiting for them.
What teens are up against
Loneliness is loud. Belonging is louder.
The enemy is not the teenager. It is the isolation, anxiety and aimlessness that tell a young person they are on their own. Every one of our youth programs exists to answer that lie with a place, a person and a purpose.
When a teen is on their own
- Afternoons are spent alone or in the wrong places.
- Anxiety grows quietly with no one to talk to.
- School slips, and so does hope for what comes next.
- Gifts and talents go unnoticed and unused.
When a teen belongs
- There is a safe place to go after school, every week.
- Caring adults notice, listen and cheer them on.
- Homework, skills and first jobs have a coach.
- Young people discover they can lead and give back.
Youth One
A home base after the bell rings.
Led by Jordan Schellenberg · 13 Avenue and 13 Street North
Youth One gives Lethbridge teens aged 11 to 18 a free youth and family centre with drop-in programs, mentoring and meals. Teens come for the half pipe, the climbing wall, the games and the art room, and they stay for the mentors who help them grow as leaders. Its Launch Forward sponsorship covers program costs, so no family pays.
Lethbridge Herald
Global News
Lethbridge Herald
“Every dollar raised will help provide opportunities for youth to belong, grow, and succeed.”Jordan Schellenberg, CEO, 2025
One Hope Youth Outreach
Big nights out. Small groups that know your name.
Led by Stephen and Anna Ropp
One Hope draws teens in with citywide events like Backyard Bash and Drenched, then gives each young person a small group where they are known, mentored and challenged to build character. Youth aged 12 to 18 study, gather for retreats and special courses, and grow in hope, faith and purpose.
Teens who give back. One Hope youth raise funds for Bridges of Hope food and education projects in Burkina Faso, so the young people being mentored become the ones who help others.
Epic Youth Services
From surviving adolescence to launching a life.
Led by Jeremy and Sarah Prete
Epic helps young people in Cardston and nearby communities through the challenges of the teen years and into school or work. It is built on a simple conviction: every teen does better with three or more caring adults in their life beyond their parents. Epic also trains youth themselves to become mentors.
Beyond charity
The teen who was mentored becomes the mentor. The youth who was helped raises funds to feed a child in Burkina Faso.
This is how we move beyond charity. We do not only serve young people. We raise them up to serve others, here at home and around the world. A dollar invested in a teen today keeps giving for a lifetime.
Your part
Three steps to change a teen’s story.
Choose a program
Lethbridge, Brooks or Cardston. Or give to all three through our youth programs.
Sponsor or give
Sponsor a teen for a school year, fund an event, or give monthly. Canadian gifts receive an official tax receipt.
Become a caring adult
Every teen needs three or more. Volunteer, mentor, or bring your church or team alongside.
Ways to stand with our youth
Be the reason a teen shows up tomorrow.
Partner as a church
Adopt a program, host an event, or send your youth group to serve.
Partner with usDisclaimer: Bridges of Hope International Network of Development Agencies (BOHINDA) is a registered Canadian charity. Donors may indicate a preference for how their donation will be used; however, the final decision on the use of all funds rests with BOHINDA. In accordance with CRA guidelines, if BOHINDA is unable to use the donation as the donor prefers, the donation will not be returned, but will be applied to the organization’s charitable purposes where it is needed most.
Every teen needs a place. Help us keep the door open.
Give today and be one of the caring adults a young person will never forget.
Why we do what we do
In Jesus’ name. For the glory of God.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me… Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”Matthew 25:35–36, 40 (NIV)
Six people Christ asks us to see. Six ways we answer.
Matthew 25 is our inspiration: we answer the call of Christ to care for the poor, the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the stranger and the prisoner, with compassion, love, justice and mercy, and we serve every person with dignity, whatever their faith. Every plate, well, classroom and loan is an act of worship. To God be the glory.