Pact Youth Clubs
Pact Youth Clubs provide adopted and fostered youth, ages 10-18, the opportunity to be mentored by adult role models with shared backgrounds, and to build community with their peers. Members are grouped with others close to their age, and meet monthly with Pact-trained counselors, adults of color who are often adopted or who were formerly in foster care themselves—allies who are eager to offer support.
We have both virtual and in-person Pact Youth Clubs (the latter held in the San Francisco Bay Area). Meetings alternate between fun activities (outings, creative projects, games) and a curriculum designed to help Black, Latinx, Asian and Native American adopted and fostered youth explore their feelings and experiences related to adoption, race, family and identity—issues they are often reluctant to discuss with parents or non-adopted friends.
Parents of Youth Club members are invited to attend quarterly meetings where adults learn together and create their own community. Attendance from at least one parent is required.
Counselor-in-Training (CIT) Program: Adopted and fostered young adults of color ages 18-21 can apply to serve as counselors-in-training at Pact Youth Clubs.
Our son said he wishes the club could meet twice a month— that’s how much he enjoyed it. Thank you for the work you do to help our adoptees grow and heal!”
Youth Club Schedules & Fees
Registration for Pact Youth Clubs opens before the beginning of each new session. In order to build a strong sense of community within the Club cohorts, drop-in/single session participation is not available. Club members are expected to attend regularly. Pact Youth Clubs tend to fill up quickly, so early registration is encouraged.
We offer two kinds of Pact Youth Clubs, virtual and in-person:
Virtual Clubs
Virtual Pact Youth Clubs are open to adopted and fostered youth of color anywhere in the United States.
- Session length: 4-5 meetings
- Session format: 1 meeting/month during school year
- Meeting schedule: 2-hour meetings held via Zoom on Saturday afternoons, Pacific Time
Fee: $400-500 ($80-100 per meeting)*
*Payment plans are available. Discounts are available for Pact member families and Early Bird registration. Need-based, income-qualified scholarships are available.
NOTE: Not currently available. Please check back in Fall 2023.
In-Person Clubs
In-person Pact Youth Clubs operate out of Pact’s headquarters in Emeryville, CA and are open to adopted and fostered youth of color who can attend monthly meetings there. Each meeting includes a catered meal and some meetings include expenses-paid excursions around the Bay Area.
- Session length: 10 meetings , September-June
- Session format: 1 meeting/month
- Meeting schedule: 3-hour in-person meetings held one Saturday afternoon a month
Fee: $900 – $1,500 for September – June session ($72-$150 per meeting)*
*The fees for face-to-face Pact Youth Clubs are on a sliding-scale based on family income and scholarships are available; $1,500 is the maximum fee. Discounts are available for Pact member families and Early Bird registration.
NOTE: Currently FULL for 2023.
Questions? Contact youthclubs@pactadopt.org
Youth Club Staff
Nthabi Anderson-Bahr
Youth Mentor
Nthabi (she/her) is a transracial, international adoptee from Lesotho. In 2021 she graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a BA in Criminal Justice. Currently, Nthabi is working with Santa Cruz County Probation with plans to attend law school to represent those unjustly impacted by the criminal/legal system. In 2022 Nthabi was a first-time youth counselor for Pact Family Camp West.
Jules Choquette
Youth Mentor
Jules (he/him) is a transracial adult adoptee and has been a part of the Pact community since he was a youth himself. He was raised with an adopted and non-adopted ally as siblings. He has been a preschool teacher and mentor for younger kids, and is excited to start working with older ages.
Jovante Holloway
Youth Mentor
Javonte (he/him) is a same-race domestic adoptee from San Francisco, CA. He is a local multimedia artist with years of experience as a youth mentor with a focus on the arts. His experience as an adoptee inspired him to work with Pact youth and provide a safe space for creative expression and constructive conversations about issues of identity and family.
Jake Plut
Youth Mentor
Jake (he/him) is a transracial adult adoptee from California, a graduate of New York University with degrees in Music and Black Cultural Studies. He currently works as a freelance producer and songwriter as well as with the community organization US4US in his native San Francisco. He has been a member of the Pact community since he was three years old and is excited to serve on Pact’s Board and as a youth mentor and counselor at Pact Camp and in the year-round youth program.
Raquel Vivanco
Event & Parent Program Manager
Raquel (she/her) is the adoptive mother to two Latin@ persons. She has been an active member of the Pact community for over a decade. As a Pact staff member, she contributes her experience with non-profit organizations and human resources, as well as her dedication to ethical adoption reform.
Deanna Matthews
Mentor Coordinator
Deanna (she/her) is a multiracial (African American/white) single parent who has found great commonality between her own experience of racial ambiguity and that of many adoptees of color. She brings that understanding to all her work at Pact, as well as a passion for educating adults and supporting children in defining their identity in positive ways in a racialized world. She has been involved in organizing Pact Family Camp since 2009, and became Camp Director in 2011.