Community Foundation Boulder County’s youth-led grantmaking program, 15 Forever, recently distributed a record-breaking $41,100 in grants to six nonprofits working to support youth mental health in Boulder County.
In 2024, the 15 Forever cohort conducted a Community Needs Assessment, and after thorough research, decided to focus its efforts on supporting youth mental health in Boulder County through mitigating negative impacts of social media, combating substance abuse and amplifying efforts towards suicide prevention.
The cohort, consisting of 13 members from schools across Boulder County, raised a record-breaking $41,100 for the program through donor outreach and fundraising. After a thorough grant review process with 28 total applicants, the cohort selected six grantees to receive grant funding: Al-Naas Civic and Cultural Foundation based in Denver, Colie’s Closet in Boulder County, Creativity Alive in Boulder, Impact on Education in Louisville, and Medicine Horse and restART, both in Longmont.
“I have really enjoyed getting to build a project from the ground up,” said 15 Forever participant Mila Korah in a statement. “Being able to research and figure out how to best address community need opened my eyes to a totally new world.”
15 Forever was established in 2006 to promote civic engagement and leadership among youth in the Boulder community. Each year, a new group of high school students comes together to engage with philanthropy as a tool to support the needs of Boulder County’s youth population. Since the program’s inception, 15 Forever has granted over $250,000.
“15 Forever being philanthropy-based was what sparked most of my interest, as money has the power to change volumes in our community and is where a lot of decision-making power comes from,” said 15 Forver participant Miralisa Trivedi in a statement. “Not a lot of experiences allow youth to have that kind of power.
“Above all else I hope that the work my board is doing brings awareness to the often silenced and secret pandemic of teen mental health issues and brings attention to how passionate youth in Boulder County are about being active in our community.”
Learn more about 15 Forever at youtube.com/watch?v=yIsiTAUDEJs.