Submitted by: Waymakers
Written by: Ronnetta Johnson
In 1972, a conversation between Dr. Arnold Binder of the University of California, Irvine's Department of Social Ecology and Captain Robert Green of the Costa Mesa Police Department sparked an idea that would transform Orange County for generations. Together, they recognized that young people entering the justice system often needed more than punishment. They needed support, guidance, counseling, and opportunities to change the trajectory of their lives.
That conversation led to the creation of the Youth Service Program in 1973 and eventually to the establishment of Waymakers.
For more than fifty years, Waymakers has remained committed to a simple but powerful belief: when people are provided the right support at the right time, lives can change. What began as a diversion program for youth involved in minor offenses has evolved into a comprehensive network of services supporting youth in crisis, victims of crime, families, and communities throughout Orange County.
The growth of Waymakers has never been driven by expansion for its own sake. Instead, every new program emerged because community needs demanded it. As staff worked alongside vulnerable youth, they discovered that involvement in the justice system was often a symptom of larger challenges including trauma, family conflict, victimization, housing instability, educational barriers, and mental health needs. The organization responded by developing programs that address root causes rather than symptoms.
Today, Waymakers provides youth shelters, counseling services, crime victim assistance, violence prevention programs, mediation services, human trafficking interventions, gang intervention programs, community education initiatives, and support for survivors of violent crime and mass victimization events. While the programs have diversified, the mission has remained remarkably consistent: helping people move through conflict and crisis toward strength, stability, and hope.
The results of fifty years of community investment can be measured in numbers, but the true impact is best understood through the lives changed along the way. In 2025 alone, Waymakers served more than 35,000 individuals throughout Orange County. Behind each of those interactions is a story of resilience, healing, and hope.
The following provides a snapshot of outcomes from the past year and the stories behind them.
More than 1200 youth and their family members sought safety, stabilization services, and resource support through our shelter programs. The services work to strengthen relationships, improve coping skills, and create healthier home environments. The value was apparent when a young man who returned several years after a stay in one of our youth shelters told staff his time at Waymakers changed the course of his life. He arrived feeling trapped by the dysfunction surrounding him. He returned as a father committed to creating a different future for his own son.
Waymakers counselors provided 13,699 hours of counseling services to youth and their families, helping individuals address challenges related to trauma, mental health, family conflict, and life transitions. A young woman who participated in a Waymakers program for youth involved in the justice system benefited from similar services. When she heard a staff member talking about Waymakers in her place of employment, she approached to say, "I don't know where I would be without Waymakers."
Almost 20,000 crime victims received help navigating the complex justice system. They are given a voice through an older woman who approached the speaker after a victims’ rights presentation, sharing that the support she received from a Waymakers advocate had quite literally saved her life.
The work we do ripples outward through families, workplaces, neighborhoods, and future generations. Every data point represents a story. Every statistic represents a life.
Over the past fifty years, more than one million individuals have been touched by Waymakers programs. That impact did not happen by accident. It happened because philanthropists, foundations, government partners, volunteers, and community members chose to invest in people and in solutions that address the underlying causes of social challenges.
Waymakers' first diversion program demonstrated the power of early intervention for youth involved in the justice system. Continued investments enabled the organization to expand services to include counseling, shelter programs, victim services, prevention education, human trafficking interventions, and community-based support systems that address increasingly complex challenges facing Orange County residents.
This evolution reflects an important truth about philanthropy: the value of charitable investment is not measured solely by sustaining programs. Its greatest value lies in creating opportunities to test new approaches, respond to community needs, and develop solutions that generate lasting change.
The proof of these investments can be found not only in client outcomes but also in enduring community partnerships. Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa, Swinerton, and Chevron have been longtime supporters of Waymakers. As leadership teams and employees have changed over the years, their commitment has remained steadfast, providing time, talent, resources, and advocacy for youth and families seeking stability and hope. Such partnerships demonstrate the enduring impact of philanthropy when organizations and communities work together around a common purpose.
Today, however, continued investment matters more than ever.
The challenges facing nonprofit organizations have become increasingly complex. Demand for services continues to grow as families face economic uncertainty, mental health needs rise, housing instability increases, and communities navigate ongoing social challenges. At the same time, nonprofit funding sources are becoming more uncertain. Changes in federal priorities, pressure on state and local budgets, and shifting charitable giving patterns are creating a difficult environment for organizations that provide critical safety net services.
Yet the needs have not diminished. If anything, the complexity of the challenges facing youth, families, and victims of crime has increased, making access to prevention, intervention, and healing services more critical than ever.
Every youth who receives counseling instead of entering deeper involvement in the justice system represents a positive community outcome.
Every victim who receives advocacy and support rather than suffering alone represents healing that benefits families and neighborhoods.
Every family that receives stabilization services and avoids crisis reduces future social and economic costs.
Every individual who gains the tools to overcome trauma strengthens the fabric of our community.
The reality is that intervention is always more effective and less costly than allowing someone to succumb to the ravages of crisis. Investments in prevention, stabilization, counseling, and victim services address root causes before problems escalate into far more expensive outcomes for individuals, families, and public systems. For fifty years, Waymakers has provided proof that these investments work.
The organization's history demonstrates what happens when communities are willing to invest in people, recognize potential, and support pathways to healing and growth. From a single diversion program serving youth in crisis to a countywide organization serving tens of thousands of individuals annually, Waymakers has shown that meaningful change is possible when compassion is paired with expertise, innovation, and sustained support.
The stories may differ, but the outcome remains the same. People find hope. Families find stability. Victims find healing. Communities become safer.
That is the proof.
For more than fifty years, philanthropy has enabled Waymakers to meet emerging needs, develop innovative solutions, and walk alongside people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. The return on that investment can be seen in stronger families, healthier communities, and generations of lives changed for the better. With continued support, Waymakers will continue transforming conflict and crisis into strength and stability for decades to come.
