Nevada Youth Empowerment Project Receives Donation

Nevada Youth Empowerment Program (NYEP), an innovative, community-based Reno youth service provider that assists homeless young people…

… received the largest donation in its history from the Jacobs Family Foundation for Children. The donation, combined with a community match, could total $850,000 for the youth service provider in 2017.

Now the program needs the help of the community to raise additional funds to match a portion of the foundation’s donation and set the wheels in motion for an intergenerational affordable housing project to serve low-income young people and seniors.

The Jacobs Family Foundation for Children is overseen by Jeff and Lynda Jacobs and their six children. On behalf, of the foundation, Jacobs, whose Jacobs Entertainment Inc. owns Gold Dust West in Reno and is purchasing the Sands Regency, along with members of his family pledged $500,000 from the family foundation to NYEP.

The donation includes an immediate cash donation of $150,000 designated to assist with NYEP’s successful residential program for women aged 17-21 who otherwise would be homeless. The young women who participate in the nine-to- 18-month NYEP Community Living Program are empowered with the knowledge, skills, resources, and support they need to establish themselves as contributing young adults.

The remaining $350,000 was pledged by the foundation as a dollar-for-dollar match to support the next phase of NYEP, the development of a 16-unit affordable housing project to meet the needs of graduates from the Community Living Program as well as low-income seniors.

Monica DuPea, Executive Director for NYEP, said she is confident the nonprofit can raise $350,000 to match the Jacobs Family Foundation for Children donation. Combined with the foundation’s matching dollars, NYEP could raise $700,000 to work on the creation of a 16-unit intergenerational affordable housing project.

“The organization is also working with other housing agencies to develop a strategic plan to provide housing,” said DuPea.

This initiative would target extremely low-income graduates of the Community Living Program as well as seniors. The young women and the seniors would share the NYEP housing project with young graduates assisting seniors with maintenance, shopping, and other tasks and in turn seniors providing mentorship.

“Without the help of the Jacobs Family Foundation for Children, I don’t know how long it might have taken to get this project to the next phase,” DuPea said. “Now we are confident that we can gather the community support we need to bring this much-needed project to reality.”

Founded in 2007, the nonprofit Nevada Youth Empowerment Project is entirely community funded and receives no assistance from federal, state, or county governments.