Isaiah's Message to the Next Generation

Some moments at the annual Together 4 Teens luncheon stay with the room long after the event is over. This year, Isaiah Duncan created one of them.

Isaiah has stood on this stage before—twice, in fact. Those who were there for his earlier appearances may remember how he introduced himself: as the son of a single mother and an incarcerated father. A young man who had walked the 10-month Y-NOW journey, found a mentor who changed his life, graduated the program, and then turned around to become a youth leader so he could give back what had been given to him.

He closed that speech with a promise that drew the room to silence:

"If my dad had the Y-NOW program, I would not be here right now. Because I am here right now, my kids will never have to be. Even though this has been the greatest experience of my life, I do not wish for my children to go through the hurt I did just to get here. Thank you, Y-NOW."

This year, Isaiah returned to the stage with an update. And this time, the promise had a name.

A Reintroduction

Isaiah asked the room for a moment. He wanted to reintroduce himself—not as the young man they had heard from before, but as who he is today.

• Still the son of a single mother and an incarcerated father
• Still a young man who will break the cycle of incarceration
• A Restaurant Development Specialist
• A leader
• A friend
• An advocate for the Y-NOW mentoring program
• A fiancé to his beautiful partner
• A father to his daughter, Tatum

He looked out at the room, and then spoke directly to his daughter:

"Tatum—if your grandpa had the Y-NOW program, I would not be standing here today. But because I am standing here today, you will never have to be. I promise you that. I love you."

What a Cycle Broken Looks Like

Isaiah's story is what the Y-NOW program looks like when it works—which, as he would say, is exactly what it does. A young person arrives carrying the weight of circumstances they didn't choose: a parent's incarceration, a fractured sense of stability, the very real statistical likelihood that the pattern will repeat. Y-NOW intercepts that story and offers something different: a trusted adult, a consistent presence, a community, and a graduation stage.

Isaiah didn't just graduate. He came back as a youth leader. He came back as a speaker. He came back as a fiancé and a father with a career and a future that his own childhood couldn't have predicted.

That is not a coincidence. That is the result of investment, and the ongoing ripple of what it means to reach a young person at exactly the right moment.

What Support Makes Possible 

At Together 4 Teens, Isaiah closed with a reminder that every seat in the room holds the power to write a version of his story for someone else. Young people, he noted, don't always know how to show appreciation to the adults who step up for them. They may not say thank you in the moment. But it stays with them. It shapes them. And it can change the entire direction of a life.

Here is what your support means in concrete terms: 

• $1,000 per year for three years: Ensures day shelter and case management for 3 young adults at our drop-in center.
• $2,500 per year for three years: Provides a full year of Y-NOW mentorship for 3 youth—the same program that changed Isaiah's life.
• $5,000 per year for three years: Ensures 30 youth in crisis have full access to overnight emergency care in our shelter house.

Every dollar is a vote for the next Isaiah. For the next young person standing on the edge of a difficult story, waiting for someone to show them a different path. For the next Tatum—a child who will grow up with a parent who is present, stable, and whole, because someone chose to give. Learn more about YMCA Safe Place Services and how you can get involved today.