Connection Groups have long been an integral part of the care Back2Back staff are trained in and provide around the world. As the Cincinnati site continues to grow through local connections and strengthening with current partners, Connection Groups are thriving at local schools. For two years, Kaylee Yoder and Stephanie Powers, Back2Back Cincy staff members,… Read more
Two young eyes peered through a small window in the door. “Do you want to go in?” Nine-year old Tabitha* shook her head no at the Back2Back staff member. “I’m too scared. No one will like me.” Right on cue, Ella* laid down her coloring pencil and walked to the entryway, reaching her hand out…. Read more
In 2021, Back2Back staff saw a pattern developing within the community of teens they served. There were young men getting in legal trouble with very few safe adults to speak positively on their behalf, and they knew something needed to be done. The Juvenile Justice Program in Cincinnati started at a local gym. A trainer… Read more
The room was loud. The adolescent girls’ voices clanged against walls as they moved around, bickered with each other, and tried to find a rhythm. “Everyone is so dysregulated,” thought Emma Martinez, Back2Back staff. She got a stack of paper and the tub of markers out and placed them in the middle of a table…. Read more
You can do it! You are brave. We are here with you. You can do hard things. The chorus of encouragement rang through the room at Urban Air. Children and teens part of Back2Back Cincinnati communities of belonging were on a field trip, and one young man stood on the edge of the zipline ledge,… Read more
The women were sitting side by side down a line of chairs. The nail technicians opposite them held up their hands, rubbing lotion into them; the moms giggled at the sensation of the hand massage and admired their nails. A week before mother’s day,, Back2Back Cincy staff planned a special event for the moms group… Read more
The noise from the crowd was growing louder. With the bases loaded, the stadium was filled with energy as the Cincinnati Reds worked for a comeback. The pitcher took his signs, began his windup, and released the next pitch. That’s when the most powerful moment of the game happened. Just in front of me, blocking… Read more
Hanna Firstenberger, Back2Back staff, held a bucket of water in one hand and a tangerine in the other. She smiled at the faces gathered around her on the floor as she dropped the tangerine into the water. They watched together as it floated to the surface. “Why did it float?” she asked her class, and… Read more
The island in the middle of the kitchen and the round, white tables just outside it are becoming sacred ground. What was once simply a church in Price Hill has become a gathering space for children after school to play games, eat food prepared specifically for them, and to connect with both their peers and… Read more
I’m unwanted. I’m ugly. I can’t do things by myself – I’m dumb. The printed words on scraps of colored construction paper bore an honest pain. Back2Back Cincy staff read them with sensitivity and then folded them into a loop, adding them to a growing paper chain. A paper chain of lies students were believing… Read more