KANSAS CITY, Mo. — One of Kansas City's newest nonprofits is working to make a difference in the lives of young adults.
The Jones House is focused on providing young adults who are aging out of the foster care system with valuable life skills.
"Well, in the metro it's huge. We have 13,000 kids that are in care and 500 of them are aging out," Kimberly Jones, founder of The Jones House said.
Jones told 41 Action News she created the organization after realizing the metro needed help finding solutions.
"You just wouldn't think, you know that these kids would have to struggle as hard as they do, but it's very hard to hear a child say, 'I'm in the system,' and refer to themselves as a throwaway or a child that's homeless that has to bounce around from house to house from pillow to post, it's very hard," she said.
For months, Jones has been helping kids like 19 year-old Keith Adams. Since age 11, Adams has been in and out of group homes.
"Going in and out and abandonment honestly, because people come in and out of my life so fast, I honestly don't even know what to do," Adams said.
He said he came from an abusive home and was looking for a place to turn. Adams recently connected with The Jones House and is preparing to move out on his own.
"That even though it gets tough, there's always a way out of it and things will always get better," Adams said about what he learned.
After spending two years in prison, Anthony Berry reached out to the organization to get himself back on track.
"You feel like you're alone, or you feel like you're a burden to somebody, feel like you can't call anybody, there's somebody you can call on and The Jones House, they're here for you," Berry said.
Starting out small, Jones is hoping to expand the nonprofit and continue providing kids with the tools they need to get, and stay on the right path.
"I want them to know that once we get these doors open, we are going to make change, we're going to make these kids voices be heard, our voices will be heard, we will not stop until our doors are open and until we start getting these kids off the streets," Jones said.
