25 Weeks of Gratitude: Immerse Arkansas
A most valuable player’s greatest win
Linda S. Haymes
Chase, a natural athlete, has always been drawn to sports. During his time as a student at Hall High School in Little Rock, he was a linebacker on the Warriors’ football team, a wrestler and a discus thrower on the track team.
“Sports has always been a big part of my life,” Chase said.
But some of his biggest challenges weren’t under those Friday night lights or on a wrestling mat. The 21-year-old had been in and out of the foster care system for most of his life.
Those experiences far from the scoreboards left Chase fighting an uphill battle. Life’s playing field was where he needed the most coaching and encouragement.
During his time in foster care, Chase became familiar with Immerse Arkansas and the help the private nonprofit organization provides. Immerse Arkansas offers support to youth ages 14 to 24 who are in or are aging out of foster care, as well as to other youth in crisis.
“Immerse Arkansas showed me how to do everything in life the right way,” Chase explained. “When I was able to get my driver’s license and my first car last summer, it was amazing,” he said.
Support from the Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas helped make counseling sessions and recreational therapy possible for Chase, giving him the confidence and skills for a strong future.
In addition to counseling and mentoring and its proven youth programming, Immerse Arkansas also offers food, shelter and safety as well as a 24/7 crisis helpline and an emergency youth shelter, The Station, providing immediate assistance to vulnerable youth ages 18 to 24 in crisis.
The program’s youth center, the OC (or Overcomer Central) is a safe, inspiring place where youth from crisis can receive healthy meals, access to showers and laundry, coaching and mentoring, life skills classes, educational and employment support and access to a computer lab. It also offers community activities.
Its long-term transitional program, LifeBASE, provides supportive, stable housing and personalized coaching and mentoring to help teens transition to adulthood. LifeBASE also supports the youth in completing their basic education, finding employment and furthering their career goals.
Immerse Arkansas currently has two locations in Arkansas – one in Little Rock and one in Conway – with a third location currently being established in Lowell.
“My family has always struggled just to make ends meet, and still does,” says Chase. While he has been in and out of the foster care system for most of his life, he still has a relationship with his parents. When he was 16, he lived in a group home, but the next year, when he was 17, he moved back home with his mom and dad. After high school, he began attending a university in Texas, where he was a walk-on for the football team, but his dad was hurt in a work-related accident, requiring him to return home to help his family.
“It’s all a big turnaround from where I was before Immerse began helping me,” he said. “If they hadn’t, I’m sure I’d still be struggling now.”
At the end of May, he was looking forward to soon moving into his own apartment for the first time. He plans to continue his education, obtain a degree in kinesiology and pursue a career as a sports trainer or a strength and conditioning coach.
“One big change for Chase was realizing he was not alone,” said Shaneka Hamilton, his coach at Immerse. Immerse Arkansas gave him support, guidance, and people who truly cared about him during a time when he needed help, she said.
“Through mentorship, counseling, and life skills, Chase gained confidence, learned positive habits, and started looking at his life differently,” Shaneka added.
“Immerse stuck right by me and gave me genuine relationships and a community that supported me while I worked toward my goals,” Chase said, noting that he has developed a solid group of friends from his time with the organization.
“My experience there helped me see life differently, have a more positive outlook, and gave me hope when I didn’t have much before.”
Immerse Arkansas is a private, non-profit organization that offers trauma-informed care and therapeutic support to vulnerable youth who have experienced significant childhood trauma but are largely disconnected from accessible resources and community.
This past year, Immerse provided therapeutic support to 165 youth through individual, group therapy and other therapeutic interventions. Immerse also provided 289 youth with weekly transformational experiences designed to help them heal through recreational activities.
Since its founding, employees and volunteers at Immerse have assisted more than 1,000 youths, giving them the tools, from basic needs to relationships with others, to build the foundations they need to succeed. Graduates from the programs help those who follow them through an alumni support program, giving back to the next generation in crisis as volunteers, assistants or mentors.
“Immerse Arkansas changed my life by helping me believe in myself and push toward independence,” Chase said.
In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Blue & You Foundation, 25 Weeks of Gratitude spotlights 25 stories of Arkansans whose lives have been impacted by Foundation-funded work.
*The Blue & You Foundation was established in 2001 through an initial gift from Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Since its inception, the Foundation’s financial base has grown through wise and prudent investment strategies. This has enabled the foundation to support its mission by making grants funded by the interest earned on those investments.