Utah-based LGBTQ youth program Encircle has already broken ground on one of its eight new planned buildings after receiving a $4 million donation last month from a group of tech and music industry giants.
“I think that sometimes, LGBTQ youth grow up not feeling that they are loved or supported by their community. They feel shame, sometimes, around who they are. And Encircle’s mission is to help them realize that they’re beautiful just how they are, and that they have bright futures,” said Stephenie Larsen, the program’s founder and CEO.
“And Encircle is just a place where we try to bring people together,” she said during a recent groundbreaking for the program’s planned Ogden location at 2458 Washington Blvd.
Apple CEO Tim Cook, Utah Jazz owner/Qualtrics founder Ryan Smith, and Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds announced their donation in February to seed Encircle’s new “$8 Million, 8 Houses’’ capital campaign. The group originally connected through the annual LoveLoud event that Reynolds launched in 2017, a Utah-based music festival that draws tens of thousands and functions as a fundraiser for a variety of outreach organizations for the LGBTQ community and families.
The “8 Million, 8 Houses” campaign will establish eight new Encircle homes in four states: Arizona, Idaho, Nevada and Utah.
Encircle already has three Utah homes in Provo, Salt Lake City and St. George, and a fourth under construction in Heber City. Another new location is being planned in Logan.
The program began in Provo in 2017.
Encircle offers youth and their families resources like free and low-cost support groups and therapy. The buildings remain open from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. each day and offer a place for youth to lounge and socialize.
The Ogden location, a three-story brownstone, will hold a cafe and kitchen, as well as art and music rooms “just like any home,” Larsen said. The program strives to “create a safe space and a feeling of home for youth who may not feel at home otherwise,” Larsen said.
Encircle employs a team of therapists, and that team will expand, Larsen said. But the bulk of the work takes place among community volunteers, who teach classes at the program.
“And we really rely on the community to make this possible,” she said.
The expansion is needed due to the reported rising rates in youth who identify as LGBTQ, according to Larsen, who pointed to a recent Gallup poll that found nearly 16% of American adults in Generation Z (those born between 1997 and 2002) identify as LGBTQ.
“I don’t think one house in the Ogden area is enough if we really look at the numbers,” she said.
“We’re working hard to help with mental health services. We want these kids to have, to be strong and so they can make the hard life decisions in a way that will lead to them having lives where they are healthy and happy,” Larsen said.
While most LGBTQ youth realize they identify as LGBTQ by age 12, they often don’t tell anyone until much later, according to Larsen. On average, they don’t come out until age 22.
“I think that sometimes, in communities, the messaging they’re hearing around who they are is not necessarily positive, and these kids feel a lot of shame often for who they are. The don’t know what their futures look like. And we want to make sure they have a bright future and that they are cared about by their community,” she said.
During the recent groundbreaking, Ogden Mayor Mike Caldwell explained that one of his extended family members tried to commit suicide at age 15 “and spent weeks in the hospital because she didn’t know where to go to access resources, to feel safe, to feel supported.”
“The family didn’t know where to access resources and ask difficult questions, and so this resource center really is personal to me and we appreciate everything that’s gone into this,” Caldwell recalled.
Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, described Encircle’s efforts as essential as the state deals with rising mental health needs.
“Mental health is the foundation of well-being, and has always been an important issue for Utah youth. But in the wake of COVID-19, mental health has become an even more critical conversation as many teenagers deal with new levels of depression, isolation, and anxiety,” Moore said.
Encircle is “answering a call” to give youth better access to mental health resources, according to the congressman.
