Vicki Sokolik, founder of Starting Right, Now and author of If You See Them
In August of 2024, our founder, Melanie Haen, read a book that changed everything: If You See Them – Young, Unhoused, and Alone in America by Vicki Sokolik.
The book was both eye-opening and deeply inspiring. Melanie’s sister and her best friend read it too, and together they talked about how urgent and important this issue was. Melanie felt a calling to do something.
Vicki is the founder of Starting Right, Now (SRN), a nonprofit in Tampa, Florida that has transformed the lives of unaccompanied homeless youth. Curious to learn more, Melanie visited SRN’s website and discovered that, due to the popularity of the book, many people across the country wanted to replicate their model. SRN was hosting an Affiliate Seminar in September 2024, with space for only ten organizations.
Melanie was the only attendee from Wisconsin — and one of only two from outside of Florida. While the $5,000 registration fee was daunting, Vicki encouraged her to attend, even offering an individual option at $2,500. With just enough frequent flyer miles to get from Appleton, Wisconsin to Tampa, Melanie made the trip.
It was an amazing experience. She toured both SRN homes as well as their education and office building. On the first evening, she shared dinner with several SRN alumni — talented, resilient young people whose lives had been profoundly changed by the program. Inspired, she took extensive notes and returned to Wisconsin determined to find out: Does this need exist here, too?
The answer was clear. It does — and not just here, but everywhere.
There are an estimated 1.7 million unaccompanied homeless youth in America, and even that number may be understated.
From that conviction, Hope Starts Here, Inc. was born — bringing SRN’s proven model of care, mentorship, and stability to Northeast Wisconsin.
Vicki shared that in every community, youth experiencing homelessness are most often discovered by teachers and school social workers, and that it is crucial to have strong community leadership on the board — including a superintendent, a police chief, and an elected official.
We are proud to share that in Menasha, Wisconsin, the Superintendent, Police Chief, and Mayor are all onboard and supportive. Together, we are building something extraordinary: a home, not just a shelter, for unaccompanied homeless youth — and a future filled with hope.
Because when young people are seen, supported, and believed in, hope truly starts here.