LFYO has teamed up with the GoodLife Foundation and Columbus Parks and Recreation to present several weeks of summer programming for area youth. For vulnerable populations, it’s critical to offer positive outlets since negativity permeates their tumultuous landscape. One thing is certain: We must keep our kids safe and out of harm’s way. Financial life skills not only improve favorable outcomes for at-risk youth, but they also serve as violence prevention measures. You see, the biggest difference between disadvantaged teens and their well-to-do peers comes down to opportunity. Successful careers, success templates, and success-oriented mindsets are par for the course in affluent (and even upper middle class) communities. And this is why their children have a distinct, modeling and networking advantage. That’s why LFYO serves as a bridge-building specialist to help level the playing field without settling a score. In other words, leveraging the three E’s of success is the key to closing the opportunity gap. Exposure. Experience. Expectation. Expose vulnerable participants to what can be, provide the tools or experience to achieve it, and watch what happens. The expectation to do better feeds itself when they’re fed a smorgasbord of real-world opportunities (which is a beautiful thing to behold when at-risk youth who once felt disempowered now value empowerment). This is how we change lives and transform legacies, one broken spirit and battered soul at a time.