Young Women’s Empowerment Center - Ephraim, Utah

Moonie T.

I went to Young Women’s Empowerment last year in February because of my behaviors and drug use. Young Women’s helped me become a better person for myself and others around me, the facility also taught me to keep looking for good things in life and to never give up . I was there for 10 months and I had my ups and downs. I can say that the staff at Young Women’s Empowerment was always there for me when I needed them. The life skills (groups) taught me how to cope in healthy ways when stressed, angry, overwhelmed etc. By the time I left I was a whole new person, and I actually wanted to see what’s next in life. So I am thankful for Justice and Benji for giving me the resources I needed and never giving up on me, and also to the staff team for teaching me how to look at the bright side of life.

Megan R.

I was court ordered and forced back in 2007 as a minor. No behavioral or substance use counseling was provided throughout the 3 to 4 months while being enrolled in their program and under their custody. Even though, that was the reason I was court ordered, was for a behavioral program.

Counselors would triangulate clients against each other, and shame you for the reason as to how you ended up there in the first place. Girls would get sick or physical ailments and would be ignored until they literally could physically not move. I remember multiple girls expressing suicide ideations and being ignored or shrugged off - as if it were for attention seeking behaviors.

We built their schoolhouse for future students, and I think actually attending class once. Our lessons were mostly Mormon faith based.

Spring G.

Was here for 6 months back around 2007. My parents were informed this was a horse therapy program. Infact, we were not around horses, not once did we do anything with a horse.
My "therapist" would often be texting people or leave the room to make phone calls. I had a man watch me urinate for a drug test once. Another time the old lady Lorna gave a girl the wrong medications, even though the patient was insistent those were not her drugs.
We spent 6 months cleaning trash on the side of the road, did some landscape work at the college, and some landscaping around the facility.
We are potatoes for pretty much every meal... I left under weight.
I was forced to urinate myself one day as we were in the desert cleaning trash and the staff didn't want to take me to a restroom and wouldn't allow me to use the bushes..
They treated many children very poorly, one girl in particular had a cognitive disability and they were incredibly hard on her still.
There was a ton of drama amongst the owners and staff when I was there, the owner was sleeping with a much younger employee.
I hope places like this don't exist soon. Tearing kids away from their families and putting them in these risky places is just wrong.

Kalea H.

The made us raise a lamb, didn’t tell us what they were going to do with it, let us get attached to the lamb, name the lamb, bottle feed the lamb. One day Lulu the lamb disappears, we get told she’s getting vaccines at the vet. 3 days later mystery meat is in the table. They refuse to tell use what it is until we all take a bite of mystery meat. The mystery meat was Lulu the lamb. I’m so serious I am NOT lying right now. That’s the type of mind games they play with CHILDREN.😀👍

Chelsa S.

I was here in 2018.
To begin, there were a few staff that were so kind.
Alison was one of them. She took the time to make meals from scratch for us.
Along with Kandice.

But, I still can’t understand WHY I was put here.
I kept running from foster homes, FOR A REASON, I had no food or basic hygiene needs.
And instead of asking why or listening to me when I tried telling my caseworker BEFORE running away, they just threw me in DT until a spot opened up here at YWEC.

My first day there I watched a girl throw a table at another girl. And I immediately knew I didn’t belong there.

No matter what you do, you’re in trouble.
The level of isolation was insane.
It’s a double wide trailer full of 12 girls.
And one time, in April, we were put on “silence” for two weeks because it got too loud with 12 girls in a tiny kitchen during dinner
If ANYONE spoke, you got days added onto your “treatment”.

We were also constantly forced to wear our hair in tight buns. Even after a shower.
I at one point had mold grow in my hair elastic and hair.
If your hair fell out, days added on.
If you forgot your glasses in your room, days added on.
We woke up at 5:15 every morning and had to write 5 page essays within a short time period.
Didn’t finish? Days added on.

We had 5 minutes in the bathroom in the morning to shower, do our hair, get dressed, etc.
Took too long? Days added on.

They don’t turn you into an “empowered woman”
They teach you to stay silent. To not ever stand up for yourself.
And that you deserve nothing. That everything that happens to you is YOUR fault.

You spend every day, crowded in a tiny part of the living room, with 12 girls, if you touched each other? Days added on.
Mind you, there were literal COUCHES in the living room that we weren’t allowed to touch.

Certain girls got special privileges, if they didn’t like you? You’re SCREWED.

One time, I forgot to bring my clothes out to the living room with me during 5 pages.
(During 5 pages you got called back to shower and change etc so you’re supposed to bring your clothes out and wait your turn.)
And I got days added on, and they refused to let me change out of my pajamas. And the pajamas they assigned you were humiliating. They were pajamas you’d see toddlers and 7 year olds wear.
And that was the day my mom was coming to get me for an off sight visit.
And you’re not allowed to change clothes on your off sight visit either.
I was forced to go out in public looking like a 7 year old.
And the staff laughed at me.
I won’t ever forget that.

I’m 22 now, in college, a double major for psychology and criminal & juvenile justice, play D1 rugby for my college and have an amazing husband, we moved onto 15 acres of land with a ranch, completely self sustaining. Meat, gardens, milk, etc. The horses are recreational😂

After getting into psychology it really made me realize just how awful it was.
A part of me still feels obligated to apologize and hide what happened there.
Because I don’t want to upset the staff.

6 years later, I still have nightmares of being sent back. And I wake up sobbing and panicking and my fiance has to help me relax.
I don’t have nightmares about DT/juvie. To put that into perspective.

I was pulled out early. Nobody else had ever been pulled out early.
I collected notes from the other girls and took them to my caseworker on my court date.
All of our phone calls were monitored and if we said ANYTHING, they’d put us back to level 1.

Only one other girl had been pulled out early. And she was there with me.
She had terrible stomach ulcers, making it difficult for her to eat, the staff made her eat twice as much.
Her caseworker also got together with mine and they decided to pull us both out.

There was another girl who was vegetarian, and they’d FORCE her to eat meat.

I told the staff from day one, I wouldn’t be there for very long.
They didn’t believe me.
But it was a silent waiting game on my end.
Collect information, and wait for the right time. They were promptly investigated after my removal. And from these reviews, doesn’t seem it changed.

Emmi S.

It was just crazy to think about how long I was there for. And it’s crazy to think about how much it messed me up too. I loved a lot of my staff, I loved a lot of the girls too, but I don’t feel like I was meant to be there. Most of the girls had some major drug abuse or even physical violence. I was just a 13 year old girl sneaking out at night. I got called “liver girl” for a little while, when I was there but I mean that’s probably the worst that happened to me. I got in trouble a lot at first until I learned how to kind my business and focus on my treatment. I was there for a year and 6 months. Some of the staff really did care about us girls and some of them just wanted the money but most of the time those staff were immediately fired. I did have some good memories there. But when I got out I missed a whole year of things. People would try to ask me if I remember this or that and I didn’t because I was confined in the group home. For the first 8 months I had nobody to call. I had no family I had no friends, it got to the point where the staff would try to call me on there days off. Even if they were on shift they would go to another room and call me. It was a really emotional 1 year and 6 months with a lot of negatives and positives , but man once I hit my blue tee I knew I did it. I knew I was so close and I would never look back. It was a traumatizing place to be some days. And sometimes I wanted to scream. But I knew why I was there and what I needed to do to leave. I understand the point of the group home but I will never understand why I was truly placed there. I will never understand why some of the things that happened happened while I was there. It’s a part of my life that I tend to forget or push away because I truly get a terrible feeling when I think about that place. When I think about my everyday life and how it was when u was there, I still talk to some staff today but not many of them. And I’m sure they understand any of the girls feelings about this. I was there during Covid so it was incredibly difficult and stressful. I will never regret the things I learned but I will forever remember how hard it was for me to adjust to life after I graduated.

Tamara P.

I was in YWEC for six months before graduating the program. I graduated fairly fast for YWEC standards. During my six months placement were were forced to go on 5 mile walks (daily) while staff drove behind us and honked in their van. Was called a “smelly dog” on several occasions, and told not to stand by staff when they ate due to the girls being unhygienic. I was in a home with 13 other girls all placed in a double wide trailer. There were 4 to each room and shower time was limited to 5 minutes MAX. While in YWEC care I witnessed a girl (youngest in our group, Age: 12) be stripped down and thrown in the shower because she was refusing to shampoo her hair. I witnessed girls wrongly restrained because they didn’t want to take the medications pumped down their throats. They do NOT care about the girls who come into the program. The staff is absolutely horrible, the living conditions are foul, and the abuse that goes on here is insane. Please do not send your children here. Do your research and look into these programs.

shianne P.

Made a great impact on my life. I was there when I was 16 they helped me get into school. I graduated the program and went to clearfield jobs Corps afterwards. I even graduated with my cna drivers license and my ged. They helped me here a lot the school teacher Forrest was the best he helped me learn math. The owner was fantastic she is a wonderful person the staff was amazing when I was there. Met some great girls there and I'm friends with still to this day.