Auston Higgins suffered a lifetime of heartache. Growing up with a mentally ill mother, he taken to live with his grandparents. He had a special bond with them and them one by one, they both died. In an out of the foster care system, finally aging out, he’s on his own now but one things for sure, he wants a college education. With your help, he can do it. Auston needs a scholarship and The Orphan Foundation of America need you to help make it happen. Will you consider funding a scholarship for a deserving youth? Visit http://www.orphan.org and the Do 1 Thing project at http://www.do1thing.org

G.J. McCarthy of the Dallas Morning News and videographer Matt Nager collaborated on this story about Ryan Dunklin, 18, and Sarah Colley, 20. They are clients of the Dallas, Texas-based Promise House, which aims to help homeless teenagers in the north Texas area.

Nicole Santos thrived as a little girl, learning art and growing up in the beauty salons where her mother worked. But Nicole says her life began to go down hill at the age of 9 when her mother died and her father stepped back into her life. Now in her 20s, separated from her husband, homeless with two children and a third on the way, Nicole has found sanctuar and a place to restart her life at a Covenant House in Florida.

This story was made by multimedia producer Laura Heald of Straw Hat Visuals and Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Bill Frakes of Sports Illustrated for Do1Thing.org.

The photography, interviews and production for this project for Do1Thing.org are by Katja Heinemann, who is represented by Aurora Select. Principal reporting done in New York, NY, February 14, 2009.

Griffin Kinard, 22, has been a poet and writer for the past five years. Born in Brooklyn, he spent his childhood and teenage years in a series of state institutions – larger residence programs for at-risk youths such as Children's Village in Dobbs Ferry, NY, and Green Chimneys in Brewster, NY. During the last four years before aging out of the system he found himself back in NYC, finishing high school while living in a Salvation Army group home for boys, The East Village Residency.

A 7-months stint in jail was followed by his 21st birthday, and a new commitment to writing.  He is a senior writer at Represent Magazine, a bi-monthly publication for and by youth in foster care by the non-profit www.youthcomm.org.  Griffin stays at his older sister's home in Harlem most nights, with occasional stints in drop-in shelters when the siblings argue.

www.katjaheinemann.com
www.auroraselect.com
Do1Thing.org
www.youthcomm.org"

Produced for the Do1Thing Project

http//do1thing.org

In 2008 the Homeless Youth Resource Center in Salt Lake City experienced a 150% increase in visits from homeless youth needing assistance.  This staggering spike is indicative of the growing problem of teenage homlessness in the United States.  Watch the stories of three different homeless teens who currently live in the Salt Lake City area.

 About the photographer:  

Mike Terry is a 26 year old photojournalist based in Salt Lake City, Utah. He works for the Deseret News as a photographer and multimedia producer.  In his relatively short career Mike has emphasized on documenting the unique religious culture of the American West as well as the color and peripheral culture of rodeo and the western lifestyle.  

Photographed for Do1Thing.org

Andrew Phileps, 19, Peter Roman, 19, Cyrus Rawlins, 21, and Mitchell Thomas, 22, have much in common — they grew up as troubled youths, didn't finish high school and now find themselves homeless in Somerset County, N.J., one of the wealthiest areas in America.

They are finding shelter at Agape House, a division of Volunteers of America, in Somerville. The men hope that the temporary refuge they find there will give them a chance to stabilize their lives so they can achieve their dreams and aspirations.

This project was photographed and produced by Matthew Apgar and Danielle Austin in SoundSlides converted to video for Do1Thing.org.