Annie Caputa and Jeff Elden are on a mission to help Jefferson County teenagers.
Caputa, a licensed clinical social worker, and Elden, a licensed professional counselor, started a nonprofit organization called Atlas Youth Outreach in 2022, providing mental health support groups for county teens.
The two also have their own private practices and decided more youth mental health services were needed in Jefferson County, said Caputa, 36, of Arnold.
“We realized a lot of the services we wanted to refer our clients to were outside the Jefferson County area,” she said. “A lot of our clients were unable to travel to St. Louis or St. Louis County. They either didn’t have transportation, gas money or they were fearful of driving to the city. We wanted to bring those services to Jefferson County.”
Atlas does not charge teens for the services the organization provides and is instead funded through a series of grants, donations and fundraising events.
A fundraising trivia night is set for Saturday, April 15, at the Arnold VFW Post 2593 at 2301 Church Road. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the trivia starts at 7 p.m.
Entry in the tournament costs $200 for a table of eight players, and reservations may be made through the organization’s website, atlasyouthoutreach.org.
Caputa said Atlas held two virtual trivia nights over the past two years and collected a total of about $6,000. The organization held a bowling night last year and raised about $3,800.
“Community support will be very important to our success,” said Elden, 44, of Affton. “That support can come in a lot of different ways. It can just be sharing our information or donations. Getting funding to stay in operation is very important. There are literal lights to keep on now.”
The pair opened an office for their organization on Jan. 10 at 1623 Jeffco Blvd. in Arnold, where groups of teens typically meet on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Caputa and Elden also travel throughout the county to meet with various teen groups at schools and community centers.
Atlas plans to have seven conflict resolution groups, three depression and self-esteem groups, two anxiety management groups and an LGBTQIA+ support group meeting by the end of this month. Some of the groups will meet at the Atlas office, and others will meet at schools, Elden said.
He said support groups typically are capped at 15 participants, and so far this year, 90 teens have participated in at least one of Atlas’ programs.
Caputa said 110 teens participated in at least one of the organization’s programs in 2022.
“A goal is to always have groups running,” Elden said. “We always want to be offering something, somewhere at some time.”
Getting started
Elden began working in Jefferson County in 2004 as a community support specialist at Comtrea, and Caputa started working in the county in 2010 as a foster care case manager. Both Caputa and Elden now have a private practice through Counseling Solutions of Festus.
The two started working together in 2013 and hatched the idea for Atlas in 2017.
“We were contracted with the Jefferson County juvenile office to run anti-bullying and conflict-resolution groups in schools,” Elden said. “We saw the need for other groups. When we researched where these groups were at and if our clients could access them, we discovered they are difficult to find, expensive to get into or had to meet criteria like needing a diagnosis or part of a certain group.”
Caputa said Atlas was incorporated in 2019 and earned its nonprofit status in April 2020. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was difficult at first to get its services started.
“We attempted to do a COVID-stress group online,” Elden said. “I think everybody, especially teens, were burnt out on virtual. They were spending all day doing virtual schooling, and they were not interested in getting online after school. We didn’t get a lot of engagement, but we still had a lot of interest in our program.”
As COVID-19 restrictions began to ease, Atlas began in-person group meetings, starting at Windsor High School in Imperial. They also met in numerous other schools and locations throughout the county.
“We were just finding anywhere someone would let us use the space,” Elden said.
Even though Atlas tailors its services to youth throughout the county, it was important to establish a base of operations where groups can meet, Caputo said.
“We work with teens enough to know it is important to have a safe space,” she said. “Some of the spaces, which were very nice to use, were a big hall or a conference room that wasn’t very comfortable. We wanted to make this like it is our home, and we want them to be comfortable in our home. We want it to be a safe place for kids.”
It’s working
Giuli Gasior, 15, of Arnold has participated in three of Atlas’ support groups since August.
“At first, I was a little skeptical if group was something for me, but I’m glad I gave it a chance because their love and support have prevented me from relapsing in my healing journey,” the Fox High School freshman said. “Atlas is the perfect place for any teen, whether you are in a really dark place or you’re just trying to maintain your progress.”
Seckman High School freshman Meddi Newcomer, 15, of Arnold has participated in two support groups and praised how Caputa and Elden approach teens.
“There are a lot of kids who feel like they can’t trust adults or have anybody they can go to. Annie and Jeff are so open-hearted and kind; they are a guaranteed person you can trust,” she said.
Nathan Jines, 14, of Arnold, who also has participated in one of the support groups, said connecting with peers is one of the program’s big benefits.
“Atlas Youth Outreach is a safe place to express yourself with other people dealing with similar stuff,” he said. “You shouldn’t be afraid to reach out because there are others who have been through similar things.”
Jordan Kirsch, Newcomer’s mother, said Atlas keeps parents in the loop by sending out emails after sessions that outline topics discussed in class and what skills were taught.
“It is a wonderful program,” she said. “It has helped Meddie tremendously. It saved her emotionally. That is something you can never take for granted.”
Future
Caputa and Elden would like to develop a community center for county teens.
“We want to have a youth center where teenagers can come and go as they please,” Elden said. “They can come in and know someone is here for homework help, or there are counselors on hand to talk to.”
The two also want to expand the services Atlas offers, and those services will evolve as Caputa and Elden get feedback from those they partner with and serve.
The two currently are asking group members and parents to fill out questionnaires to help them develop a summer program.
“We really try to ask people what they want,” Caputa said. “We reach out to schools to find out what we can do to serve their students the best. We reach out to parents and ask that question. We are always asking our teens, ‘What can we do to best serve you? What is it that you need?’ I think often teens are not asked that question.
“We want to be the people who ask that. We want to provide what they need and not what we think they need.”
For more information about Atlas Youth Outreach, go to atlasyouthoutreach.com, call 314-550-7846 or email info@atlasyouthoutreach.org.