Our Mission is to affect youth and their families with the life-changing love of Jesus Christ, releasing them to be all God intends them to be—safe, together, healthy, and free. Our Vision is to see at-risk youth, future generations, and society transformed through a relationship with God and loving adults. Release, Inc. began in 1994 with two guys, a Bible, and a boom box. They used Christian rap music and God’s word to reach the youth at the Douglas County Youth Center. Early on the ministry became aware of the need for mentoring, Bible studies and aftercare that would go beyond the walls of the DCYC. Mentoring was formally added in 2001, and the overall ministry continued to grow every year adding chaplains, more Bible study leaders, and more mentors. In late 2004, Release opened up its first residential care home. Release engages with at-risk youth and their families throughout Douglas, Sarpy, and Pottawattamie counties. We serve over 350 kids per week through our various programs. MENTORING Release engages youth through professional chaplaincy and various volunteer mentoring opportunities in the juvenile justice centers and in the community-at-large. Release matches caring Christian adults with youth and supports the matches to encourage longevity of the relationships. Mentors meet weekly with youth to support them while incarcerated and when they return to the community. FOSTER CARE Release provides initial training and ongoing support to foster families to provide temporary, loving homes when children cannot remain in their family homes. RESIDENTIAL CARE Our group homes specialize in the needs of teenage clients, housing them in a family environment where they receive intensive therapeutic care. COMMUNITY-BASED INITIATIVES Release goes into the homes of families to help keep them together, or reunite them when they have been separated.