Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form<\/p>\n
Organization Name: This Is Me
\nLegal Name (if Different): This Is Me
\nAlso Known As:
\nMailing Address: 1651 Jefferson Parkway
\nCity: Northfield
\nState: MN
\nPostal Code: 55057
\nMain Phone: 507-595-5437
\nMain Fax:
\nOrganization Website: www.idoexist.org
\nEmployer ID Number: 99-2114963
\nOrganization Tax Status: Tax exempt<\/p>\n
Proposal Information<\/p>\n
Today’s Date: 12\/02\/2025
\nRequested Amount: 7500<\/p>\n
Project Title: Empowering Foster Youth Through Identity, Belonging, and Enrichment
\nProject Description:<\/p>\n
This Is Me empowers foster youth across Southern Minnesota by providing identity-affirming, trauma-informed supports that build confidence, belonging, and long-term well-being. Youth in foster care face overwhelming challenges\u2014frequent placement changes, instability, school disruption, and trauma\u2014that place them at significantly higher risk for academic failure, mental health struggles, and involvement in the juvenile legal system. Our project addresses these challenges through three core components: identity, belonging, and enrichment.<\/p>\n
First, our identity-building programs provide youth with meaningful ephemera\u2014such as senior photos, adoption and reunification photography, yearbooks, and school memorabilia. For children who often lack tangible proof of their own story, these items become emotional anchors, reinforcing their self-worth and helping them build a cohesive sense of identity despite transitions.<\/p>\n
Second, our mentorship program offers consistent, trauma-informed support by pairing foster youth with trained adult mentors for a minimum of one year. Mentors meet weekly with their mentees, offering stability, encouragement, and positive relationship-building during the critical ages of 11\u201315. These relationships reduce feelings of isolation, increase resilience, and serve as powerful protective factors against the foster-care-to-prison pipeline.<\/p>\n
Third, our enrichment and extracurricular support provides access to sports, arts, lessons, clubs, and community experiences that foster belonging and engagement. These opportunities help youth build positive peer networks, discover strengths, and stay connected to school and community life.<\/p>\n
With support from the Hermanowski Family Foundation, This Is Me will expand these services to reach more foster youth across rural Southern Minnesota. Funding will directly support photography sessions, yearbooks, mentorship activities, enrichment scholarships, and the organizational capacity needed to deliver dependable support to vulnerable youth.<\/p>\n
Together, these programs empower foster youth to feel seen, valued, and capable of achieving their full potential.<\/p>\n
Total Project Budget: $15000<\/p>\n
Other Funding
\nSources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Bethel Foundation – $2500 & Northfield Shares – $5000<\/p>\n
Project Duration: January 1, 2026 – December 31, 2026
\nGeographical Area Served: Southern MN
\nAge Group To Be Served: 7-18 years old<\/p>\n
Contact Information<\/p>\n
Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.): Mrs.
\nContact First Name: Holly
\nContact Last Name: Schoenbauer
\nContact Title: Executive Director
\nContact Phone: 507-595-5437
\nContact Email: hschoenbauer@idoexist.org<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form Organization Name: This Is Me Legal Name (if Different): This Is Me Also Known As: Mailing Address: 1651 Jefferson Parkway City: Northfield State: MN Postal Code: 55057 Main Phone: 507-595-5437 Main Fax: Organization Website: www.idoexist.org Employer ID Number: 99-2114963 Organization Tax Status: Tax exempt Proposal Information Today’s Date: 12\/02\/2025 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-grants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8724"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8725,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8724\/revisions\/8725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}