On Wednesday, April 2, something powerful happened in Casper.
Over 30 individuals—from 17 organizations—gathered with a shared purpose: to reimagine and create community spaces where teens feel safe, welcomed, and empowered. This wasn’t just another meeting. It was the beginning of a coordinated, community-led movement to improve outcomes for our youth—one safe, supportive space at a time.
Where It All Began
Last summer, a group of civic and business leaders, nonprofit agencies, school officials, and community members came together in response to a rise of teen-on-teen violence in Natrona County. From those early conversations, the Youth Mental Health Collective (YMHC) was born. Facilitated by the Natrona Collective Health Trust, the YMHC’s mission is to listen, to learn, and to act in meaningful ways that center youth voice and well-being.
Two early projects helped lay the foundation:
- A community resource guide built with youth in mind.
- A youth forum, where teens courageously shared the real challenges they’re facing.
From that forum, we heard some tough but important perspectives:
- Teens feel distrusted and disrespected by adults in their lives.
- They face peer pressure, bullying, and ongoing mental health struggles.
- Many feel unsafe, unseen, and lack spaces where they can truly be themselves.
These insights pointed us in one clear direction: focus on third spaces—those essential places outside home and school where teens can gather, feel a sense of belonging, and thrive.
What Happened at the April 2 Workshop?
Our workshop started by defining what “third spaces” mean in the context of youth: inclusive, welcoming places where teens can connect, decompress, and be themselves.
From there, we asked a big question: What does success actually look like?
Working together, the group brainstormed strengths, opportunities, and potential challenges. We left with a powerful set of shared commitments that will guide our work:
- To empower youth through encouragement and listening in the planning, creation, marketing, implementation and evaluation of third space(s)
- To create youth driven, welcoming and positive third spaces that are sustainable, consistent and accessible for all teens to gather where wellbeing and the vibe are the focus.
- To create a positive community impact that increases belonging and reduces crime and bullying.
- To establish a set of clear but general agreements for third spaces so people can be who they are and not a danger to themselves or others.
We ended the session by brainstorming actions we’re ready to take—individually and as a team. And though time ran short, the energy in the room was electric.
What’s Next?
At our next gathering, we’ll break into teams and set timelines to bring these ideas to life. Long-term, we’ll continue listening to youth, collecting data, and exploring the other challenges they’ve shared with us.
The Natrona Collective Health Trust is also working on a gap analysis to identify where systems can improve and how we can make lasting, structural change.
Want to Get Involved?
This work is just beginning—and we need partners, collaborators, and champions. If you’re passionate about youth, building community, or creating spaces where everyone belongs, we’d love to hear from you. Contact Leanne Loya at [email protected] if you’d like to get involved.
Let’s keep building a community where every teen feels seen, supported, and safe.
