Who We Serve

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Identity serves 10,000+ youth and families each year, benefiting 40,000 to 50,000 residents who live in high poverty areas of Montgomery County.

While our primary focus and expertise is on Latino youth and their families, with our partners, we serve all youth who need help.

The youth and families in our programs demonstrate tremendous resilience in the face of adversity, including:

Disproportionate Adverse Childhood Experiences
Unstable housing
Lack of health insurance
Food insecurity
Language barriers
Transportation barriers
Intergenerational poverty

The majority of Identity parents are immigrants. They work to surmount challenges that directly impact their children’s ability to succeed in school and in life such as their own limited English and formal education, disproportionate childhood traumas and financial instability. Programs and services aim to help families overcome these challenges. Identity is dedicated to interrupting the intergenerational cycle of poverty. For more insights about those we serve, as well as program outcomes that demonstrate how we are making a difference and helping youth and families fulfill their highest potential, see our latest Annual Evaluation Report.

Our community

Our Community

Montgomery County, Maryland is home to some of the most diverse cities in the nation. Contributing to that cultural richness are the growing number of Latino youth and families. Their future is our future.

Identity works to improve the lives of Latino and other historically underserved youth and families in Montgomery County, where Latinos are projected to represent 25% of the county’s population by 2040 (Maryland Department of Planning, projections as of December 2020). The growth is even more dramatic among Latino youth, who now make up more than one-third of the county’s public school population.

Identity youth often face serious challenges, including poverty, inadequate health care and lack of parental supervision because their parents are working long hours or multiple jobs. These difficult life circumstances can lead to poor outcomes such as low academic achievement and truancy; teen parenthood; underemployment and unemployment — situations that severely limit young people’s options and opportunities.

At the same time, our Latino youth bring many strengths: love of family, pride in their culture, an eagerness to succeed and an impressive resilience to forge ahead in spite of the hardships they bear. Identity addresses challenges by building on such strengths and emphasizing skills that support the well-being of youth and families in all aspects of their lives.

Success Stories

We are very proud of each of these inspiring people, and we thank them for sharing their personal stories.

The youth served by Identity’s programs have typically endured situations and setbacks early in life that many adults would find overwhelming. The stories featured here bring some of those challenges to life. They also demonstrate how eager and determined our youth can be to create a better future for themselves and others — and how much they can achieve when we provide support, guidance and opportunities.

Adela

“My name is Adela. My dream for my children is that they will be successful in school and in life, and be better than we were growing up.

My third-grader Oscar and fourth-grader Natalie participate in Identity’s before-school reading program and after-school enrichment and soccer program. Before joining the reading program, Oscar was behind in reading. Now he is reading above grade level! The first time he had the confidence to stand up and read aloud, I cried with happiness and pride. His older sister Natalie is learning bigger, more complex words while also learning life lessons. Amazingly, because of the way Identity works, as their English improves, so does their Spanish.

And after school, my kids are learning how to get along with others, how to make good decisions and where to go if they need help.

It is not just Oscar and Natalie who benefit from Identity. Actually, my whole family does. Our case manager Kenia helped us find food, furniture, and a computer so that the kids can do their school assignments at home. Identity even helped us with counseling and support to deal with a very scary bullying situation.

Identity never quits on me, or my children.

They treat us like family. It doesn’t matter what we need, Identity is there for us. And I know that other families feel the same way. Honestly, without Identity, I don’t know who would help Hispanic families like mine stay resilient, succeed in school and get ahead.”

Gloria

Gloria escaped an abusive home in Florida at 15 to live in Maryland with her boyfriend, but when she tried to enroll in school, she was told that she needed a parent’s signature, and they refused. Determined to get an education, she tried again at age 18, when she was old enough to enroll herself, but by that time she was pregnant and again she was sent away, told it was unlikely she could finish the required classes before legally aging out.

Gloria continued to work nights and weekends as a supermarket cashier, while raising her baby boy Jayden. Then one of her co-workers mentioned they were attending GED classes at Identity’s Up-county Youth Opportunity Center. So at age 21, Gloria tried one more time to get her high school diploma. Her Identity Case Manager not only immediately enrolled her in GED classes and workforce development counseling, but also connected her to safety net resources like food and legal aid.

Gloria was doing well when she could get to class, but missed some because of work, so she asked to take a practice test to see if she could pass. She started with the science practice test and passed! Gaining confidence from that early success and with coaching from her Case Manager, Gloria pushed on, and within two months passed all four tests and earned her High School diploma.

But for Gloria, a better future doesn’t end there. She enrolled in Identity’s workforce certification program in partnership with Montgomery College to learn child development, a certification required to work in childcare facilities. Working with children is not only a labor of love, but the childcare industry working hours will give her more time with little Jayden.

“I’m not doing this for me. Just for me, I can survive, if I don’t have money its ok. But I have a son, whatever I do affects him, it’s for a better future for him. That’s my motivation. I want to be an example for him.”

Josue

Josue didn’t expect his life to be much different from his parents’.  Without a high school diploma, his mother and father worked multiple jobs to keep food on the table and a roof over the family’s head. 

When Josue was a freshman in high school, still in ESOL classes, his passion and joy in life was playing soccer. That year he met Coach Efrain and joined the Identity Recreation Program. It was on the soccer team that he felt he belonged and felt part of something, a family.  Because many of the players’ parents were busy working, the Identity coaches drove players to and from games.  Those long drives were a good time to just talk. Josue says, “that’s when I really got to trust Coach Efrain”.  

Then tragedy struck: Josue’s Dad died suddenly. But Josue’s Identity soccer family was there to wrap their arms more tightly around him.  Josue says that throughout high school Coach Efrain pushed him to excel not just in sports but also academically.  Josue made the school’s varsity soccer team, tested out of ESOL, and by junior year was taking IB English, an honors track. With that combination of achievements, Josue says, “I began to believe I could go to college.  I can do better than my Dad and my Mom.”

 Today Josue has soccer scholarship offers from two colleges. And he sees a future of giving back. “I want to do social work.  I want to help other kids whenever they need something. Cause if it wasn’t for Coach Efrain and Identity I probably wouldn’t be playing soccer right now and I certainly wouldn’t be starting college. I feel like if Efrain could make a change in me, I could make a change in somebody else.”

Mauricio

Mauricio wanted to look tough as a kid, so he began getting tattoos on his hand and arm when he was barely a teenager. But when he moved to Maryland at 14, those tattoos were a magnet for trouble.  In high school, he was beaten up by teens who wrongly assumed the tattoos meant he was a rival.  He was a target for law enforcement who also assumed the worst when they saw his inked arm and hand, particularly a very visible dollar sign next to his palm.

At 22 Mauricio was much wiser than his teenage self.  He wanted to break from the negative and dangerous assumptions people made about him, earn his high school diploma, and position himself for a better job and a better life.  He came to Identity’s Downcounty Youth Opportunity Center looking for that second chance.  There he studied for his GED, built up his workforce development skills and social/emotional skills like conflict resolution.  

Finally, Identity helped Mauricio realize his dream to remove his very visible tattoos – beginning a series of laser removal treatments on his hand – transforming this magnet for trouble into a fresh start.

Identity believes Mauricio -- and all youth --deserve a second chance, and tattoo removal is one of the many ways the Youth Opportunity Centers help remove barriers preventing youth from reaching their full potential. This service is free to youth who believe their visible tattoos are an issue for their safety, or a barrier to finding work. In return, the youth complete a significant number of community service hours for each tattoo that is removed.

Miguel

Miguel was labeled the bad kid.  By the time he was in 6th grade at Redland Middle School, his grades were terrible, and his behavior in school was worse.  The school Vice Principal recommended Miguel attend an Identity after-school program.  At first, he lived up to his bad reputation, constantly interrupting the facilitators, often with inappropriate comments.  One day Miguel revealed to Identity staff, “They say I am a bad kid, so I am.”

In order to shift Miguel’s thinking, the facilitators changed their approach and emphasized the positive contributions Miguel was making to group conversations.  At first Miguel was uncomfortable being singled out for good ideas and insights. But as the days went on, he became more receptive to this positive reinforcement, which allowed him to become first a good team member, and then develop his natural leadership gifts.

Everyone saw a difference in the “bad kid”.  He was respected by his peers, confident in his own intelligence, and someone with an infectious sense of humor. As his facilitator said, Miguel was like the fox in the movie Zootopia.  He was bad because that’s how everyone saw him. Through Identity’s after-school social and emotional skill-building program, he changed his self perception, and broke out into the real Miguel-- a successful student, team-member and leader.

Sandra

Identity’s non-clinical emotional support groups are empowering and equipping teens and parents to help themselves and their friends manage difficult emotions. For Sandra, it was life-changing.

As a teen, Sandra moved to Maryland to live with her father who she hardly knew. Sandra felt impossibly isolated, suddenly thrust into a new school and community. Plus, she missed her mother and sister desperately.

Life began to brighten when she joined the first Encuentros emotional support group for teens organized by the Identity managed School-Based Wellness Center at Wheaton High School. Designed in response to the youth mental health crisis, Encuentros provides clients with a safe space to engage in open, honest discussion about mental health challenges and share strategies for coping with them. The groups are co-led by staff and specially trained previous Encuentros participants.

Sandra believes Encuentros has such transformative power that she wants to help it grow. She not only completed all the training required to be a Youth Peer Leader and group facilitator, but is committed to spreading the word. She presented the Encuentros model at the 2023 National School-Based Health Care Conference in Washington, D.C. with Identity staff.

“Before joining Encuentros I was very shy, but the program helped me to come out of my shell and be more open, while also growing and learning from other students,” Sandra says. “Being part of Encuentros, not only as a participant, but now also as a Youth Peer Leader, has helped me to support my younger sister, my family, and my friends.”

Inspired by Latino cultural traditions of family and friends helping each other in times of emotional distress, Identity’s Encuentros program provides non-clinical culturally and linguistically appropriate emotional support groups for high-school aged youth and adults. The groups cover topics such as anxiety, trauma/resilience, grief, depression, emotional agility, domestic/intrafamily violence, assertive communication, migration and self-care.

Vanessa

“Truly Identity has been a fundamental part of who I am today as a person.” Vanessa B., Parent

Identity not only teaches and models for young people the skills they need to thrive in the modern world, but also works to support their ultimate support system – the family.

"Since I have been part of the Identity family --because that is how they make me feel, as a family— the support has been comprehensive, from resources and financial assistance for myself and my children to an attentive ear when I have needed it or a word of encouragement when I wanted to give up out of fear. Identity has marked a before and after for me. I owe Identity my present and my promising future.”

Vanessa B. first encountered Identity when her son joined Jóvenes de Mañana, our after-school elementary reading program. She attended parent workshops to learn how to engage in his education and be a champion for his success. Later she joined Identity’s Parent Leadership Academy and learned how to be a champion for the community. When Identity opened up a Workforce Development program to parents, Vanessa seized the opportunity, and began attending the Early Childhood Education course, delivered in partnership with Montgomery College. After cleaning houses for 17 years, Vanessa says this training changed her life:

“Thanks to Identity the words fear and uncertainty are no longer in my future. Today I think about my future with joy, security and confidence because I have a profession that allows me to continue reaching goals. Today, I feel capable of achieving many things that years ago I thought were not for me. Working with children is the best experience I have ever had and I owe that to Identity.”

Together, we can celebrate the victories of youth and parents and offer help when something extra is needed.

Part of the Identity family, then and now…
Over the years, a number of youth and parents who were once Identity clients later joined our staff. Explore their inspirational stories.

Jose Rosario

In 2001, Jose Rosario participated in Identity’s After School Program. He had not had a birthday celebration since he was three years old. Executive Director Diego Uriburu not only made sure to throw him a party that year, but helped Jose set high expectations for his future. Now, as Identity’s Senior Manager for Facilities Jose is proud to be able to help others the way he was helped.

Brayan Rivas

In 2011, Brayan Rivas was a high school student trying to get through “the last push” towards his diploma. He says Identity facilitator Stefanny S. motivated him to graduate and believed in his leadership abilities. Now a Coordinator, Brayan enjoys the family-like bond at work and is proud of how their collective efforts support the community.

Evelyn Ponce

Evelyn Ponce arrived in the U.S. with her husband and children eighteen years ago and soon discovered Identity’s parenting program. “My family received important information, food assistance and crucial help for mental health,” she remembers. Three years ago Evelyn jumped at the chance to join Identity as a Case Manager. “I love to share my history with the families that I serve, telling them that I was in the same situation as them.”

Rolando Quintanilla

Since middle school, Rolando Quintanilla says he has “always kept Identity very close.” Having experienced the positive impact on his own family, Rolando feels passionate about bringing that same sense of purpose and belonging to others through Identity’s Recreation program.

Oscar Barrientos

Just five years ago, Oscar Barrientos was an Identity client. He says Rec Manager Efrain Viana had a particularly strong impact on how he developed as a person. Since then, Oscar has himself become an inspiration as a soccer coach and Youth Development Specialist. As an Identity employee he’s most proud of “helping newcomers adapt to their new school environment.”

Angel Varela

“They changed my life; they taught me to accept myself as I am.”
When Case Manager Angel Varela was a client, he participated in Identity’s LGBTQ program. After 19 years working for the organization, Angel still remembers how co-founders Candace Kattar and Diego Uriburu got him through an identity crisis “like family.”

Jonathan Henriquez-Lara

Identity Program Manager Jonathan Henriquez-Lara came to Identity as a client who needed a GED. His Identity mentor “believed in me,” Jonathan says, remembering the tears of joy he and his mother cried after he passed his exam. “We knew my life would change from that moment on.”

Magali Cruz

“Working with kids who recently arrived from their countries and seeing them grow and open up brings joy to my heart,” says Magali Cruz, an Identity facilitator and former client. As a teen in an Identity After School Program, Magali was inspired by her own facilitator. “Kenia Hernandez pushed me to open new doors and opportunities,” she remembers. “As a result, I discovered my field of study and became passionate about it."

Maribel Lopez

Maribel Lopez remembers how Program Director Carolina Camacho made her feel “like family” in 2012 when her teenage son joined an Identity program. A year later, she became an employee and is now working to help other Identity parents with a kind word and safety net support. “I am very blessed by my work.”

Marlon Morales

In high school, Marlon Morales says he and his friends were “a little bold,” and teachers did not want to deal with them. As an Identity client, he felt loved and heard. Through field trips and retreats, Marlon’s mentors showed him “how to have fun without negative activities in my life.” Now, as an Identity Program Manager, Marlon says, “I always loved to serve others. I am able to give back to the community and get paid for it. It’s a win-win situation.”

Ana Maria Toloza

Ana Maria Toloza had recently arrived from Colombia when she met Identity’s Majo Lizarzaburu who helped her navigate her new life as an American high schooler. Embraced by the Identity family, after high school Ana Maria had the opportunity to intern with the finance department, which led to her current position in Accounts Payable. “You can contribute from behind the scenes,” she says, adding, “I take great pride in being a Latina who is able to help more Latinos in need.”

Tatiana Murillo

When Tatiana Murillo came to the U.S. at age 11, she took on the responsibilities of an adult. Identity’s programs gave her the chance to be a kid again. Now, as Identity’s Director of Finance, Tatiana says that helping younger generations “makes my heart full.”

Stefanny Sarich

“I have never felt so heard,” says Identity’s Bilingual Mental Health Therapist, Stefanny Sarich, remembering her time as a client. When she opened up to an after-school facilitator about her abusive home life, she felt validated. As a therapist helping clients deal with trauma, “I wanted to be the supportive person I had while I was a participant.”

Allison Lopez

“Supported, motivated, and hopeful.” That’s how Workforce Development Specialist Allison Lopez wants to make her clients feel, because that’s how Identity’s Carlos Aguilar made her feel as a client. “Carlos helped me in the process of validating my university degree and gave me hope where I did not see it,” she says. “At Identity, we all have the same gift of serving those who need it most.”

Mabel Lozano

Mabel Lozano, Parent Outreach Worker, first came to Identity to learn how to advocate for her community’s children in school. “My life changed radically, because they motivated me to move forward, to not give up and to fight for my dreams,” she says. Mabel, whose son improved his English literacy through Identity’s after-school program, is proud “to be part of a positive change in the lives of others.”

Luis Serna

Luis Serna, a successful accountant in Mexico, emigrated to escape rising crime. He remembers meeting Identity’s Program Director Carolyn Camacho as he struggled to understand the school system for his kids. “I felt like I wasn’t alone — that there were some U.S. citizens who welcomed us with a friendly face.” Now Executive Assistant, Luis is proud to “give hope to people who might feel as I did long ago.”

Diana Silva

“Someone in this country is interested in my needs. I’m not alone!” Those were Diana Silva’s first thoughts after connecting with Identity as a parent of two children in after-school programs. As an Identity Case Manager, Diana was proud “to be able to serve people that at some point are struggling with any situation. You can help someone by just listening carefully and connecting with resources or just being there for them.”

Marlyn Catalina Ortiz Villamizar

After giving birth, Marlyn Catalina Ortiz Villamizar says Identity’s Encuentros non-clinical emotional support program guided her through the difficult emotions of motherhood. Now, Marlyn is giving back by coordinating Encuentros groups for teens. She says: “I feel proud to be a part of Identity because I’m helping my Latino community.”

Idiana Gomez

Idania Gomez participated in one of the first Encuentros non-clinical emotional support groups at Identity and remembers what a huge impact the program made on her life – eventually co-facilitating groups herself. Now a Coordinator for the teen Encuentros program, Idania is proud to give back to the community by helping kids “grow their dreams.”

Branyely Fernandez

Branyely Fernandez remembers the support she received from Identity when she was in high school, including warm winter clothes and help looking for work. Youth Opportunity Center staff were there for her and her family, “opening the doors with Identity as a second home.” Currently a Program Assistant, Branyely feels grateful to work alongside the same Identity staff who lifted her up as a young client.

Majo Lizarzaburu

As a client, Majo Lizarzaburu sometimes skipped school, only to show up for the Identity program afterwards. Her facilitator insisted that she attend both and encouraged her to become a Peer Educator. Today, as one of Identity’s Program Coordinators, Majo is proud to help kids reach their goals.

Kary Enriquez

At an Identity retreat, a fellow client’s life story changed Kary Enriquez. “I could not believe what others actually go through,” she says. As a Program Facilitator at the Watkins Mill High School Wellness Center, Kary is a role model who brings this early lesson about compassion to her students.

Sofia Cabral

During high school, former client Sofia Cabral experienced a Be Yourself weekend retreat, with friends and staff. Now as an Identity Program Facilitator, Sofia says, “The Identity community is exactly how I remember it. All a family, with responsibilities, and everyone with a helping hand.”

Karla Ponce

As a volunteer at Identity’s overnight retreats, Karla Ponce felt a positive energy. “Those were usually emotionally intense, but at the same time brought everyone together.” Seeing the impact, she returned as an employee, now in Finance. “I wanted to be part of the change.”

Lisette Dardon

As an Identity client, Lisette Dardon was inspired by Executive Director Diego Uriburu’s generosity of spirit and his belief in her leadership qualities. Lisette is now leading the Identity-run Wellness Center at Watkins Mill High School as Program Manager.

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