SOAP Happenings
1) The SOAP Radio Hour is hosted on KSUA (UAF's Radio Station: 91.5FM) on Wednesdays from 2-4pm. It features our AmeriCorps VISTA as the main DJ with a couple SOAP clients acting as guest DJs each and every week. Music and program content is selected by our youth. The mission here is to offer a creative activity that helps our youth work on public speaking and other job-related skills. We also use this time to help advocate for and support our homeless and at-risk youth population.
2) Local fashion boutique Chartreuse has partnered with SOAP to offer an exclusive art club of sorts for our clients. Owner Sheri Olesen has our clients participate in community events helping them feel more connected with the Fairbanks population and learn new job skills. The first project had club participants help create a massive haunted house for Halloween in 2010, which helped raise money for the Fairbanks Breast Cancer Detection Center. Follow SOAP on Facebook and Twitter to learn of other upcoming art club events.
3) Citywide Strings! This is a music education program for any youth throughout the city. Its mission is to offer free music lessons using donated time by teachers and donated space and instruments for use. Currently, private lesson are being held for our own clients at SOAP from 3-5pm on Tuesday afternoons while the public is open to attend lessons at Access Alaska on Wednesdays from 5-6pm. The goal here is to provide music education to those who otherwise can't afford it or are not part of a formal structure that offers this service. For many, creating music is a way to make negative energy positive. It is also a way to expand creative skills, especially in those who are still maturing in life..
 Our Street Outreach & Advocacy Program (SOAP) staffs people dedicated to reaching out to 10- to 21-year-olds who are at high risk of becoming homeless, or who are currently homeless or have run away from home. Our goal is to protect youth from abuse, sexual exploitation, and assault, and to help prevent involvement in criminal activity due to their lack of money, support and resources.
We work with the Fairbanks community to ensure no one lives without adequate shelter, food or critical necessities. Our hope is that each youth we work with understands their value as a human being.
SOAP is here to support homeless youth to find a way off the streets and move towards  stability. We attempt this through education to protect themselves from physical harm and sexual exploitation, getting back into school, and providing individuals and families with counseling and/or mediation to help resolve conflicts.
We offer transportation to resources and shelter, survival packs, youth activities, connections to a choice of counseling and education programs, peer groups & support, mediation and conflict resolution and referrals to community resources.
Referral sources: Agencies, police, social workers, judges, probation officers, school counselors, private clinicians, self, family or any concerned community member.
This program is free to 10 to 21 year old youth. Funding is provided through a Federal grant and general donations.
Our Youth Drop-In Center is located at 530 7th Ave, stop by and check it out. 374-9913
Counselors: Ashley Jewkes, Youth Outreach Coordinator- cell 378-4392 - ashley@fcaalaska.org; Seth Hawkins, Youth Advocate - cell 978-8508 - seth@fcaalaska.org; and Heather Munro, VISTA Volunteer - vista@fcaalaska.org.
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