Ashley Thomas

We believe in the transformational power of acceptance. As an Austin nonprofit focused on helping youth and young adults, we work every year with thousands of young men and women who’ve endured circumstances that are unimaginable. Abuse. Neglect. Abandonment. Violence. Many have endured years of moving from one foster care placement to another without ever knowing a single adult that they could depend on. Others have had to survive years of unstable or unsafe family situations. And far too many are forced into homelessness to escape intolerable circumstances for the "freedom"​ of life on the streets. We’ve all seen the depressing statistics. But what can be done to make an impact on these statistics? More important, what are we willing to do to turn around the very real lives behind the statistics? We are fearless in our commitment to success. From our emergency shelter and counseling services to our education services, workforce training and transitional living – everything we do is focused on creating self-sufficient individuals, and in turn, strong, stable families. LifeWorks Youth & Family Alliance offers more than 20 programs that can be accessed alone or in combination to help our youth and families achieve self-reliance. This comprehensive approach quickly identifies and initiates the right mix of services to support each client’s individual goals by bringing together all of the strengths of LifeWorks in a focused, actionable framework. Empowering better futures requires proven, measurable results. We do not shy away from data. We embrace it. It’s why we use a results-based accountability model to assess the impact and effectiveness of our services. It is also why we are one of the only area nonprofits accredited by the Council on Accreditation for Services to Children and Families. Because we know that all our passion, commitment and hard work must produce consistent, measurable, positive outcomes for our organization to make an impact.