Our Story and Transition

Letters From The Founders:
John & Mary Thompson

Dear SPIRIT NYS Supporters:

Thank you for your generous support of our students and organization! We are excited and delighted to announce a significant transition for SPIRIT NYS. After four years of dedicated service as an all-volunteer agency, when we assisted more than 200 homeless and parentally insecure students to stay in school through graduation, we are pleased to announce that the management of SPIRIT NYS will be transitioning to EnCompass: Resources for Learning, part of the Education Success Foundation (ESF) family of organizations. As of July 1, 2025, EnCompass will manage all aspects of SPIRIT NYS.

We founded SPIRIT NYS in 2021 with the intent of being an all-volunteer agency for the initial three years to demonstrate its efficacy and to assess that the community was willing to support it. Our goal was to eventually transition to a nonprofit organization capable of expanding its reach—both in the breadth of services offered and in the number of schools and students assisted. We are thrilled to report that this transition to EnCompass aligns perfectly with these objectives. We have met our initial goals and many more.

EnCompass and Education Success Foundation are trusted, established organizations whose leaders share our vision. They are well-equipped to take SPIRIT NYS to new heights, ensuring that our mission continues to thrive and expand. The students we serve and others will have access to significantly greater resources, and this transition offers a seamless continuation of our efforts, enhancing SPIRIT NYS’ capacity to serve more schools and students effectively. Together, we will continue to make a significant difference in the lives of the students and communities we serve.

We are so grateful for your support over the past four years. Your dedication and commitment have been instrumental in making SPIRIT NYS a success, and we are confident that this transition will strengthen EnCompass’ and SPIRIT NYS’ collective impact. Amy Breitenborn ([email protected]) will continue as your contact for supporting the program. We look forward to your continued support as we embark on this exciting new chapter with EnCompass and ESF. 

Thanks again for your support and belief in our mission. The impact we have had wouldn’t have happened without you. We know you feel pride and a sense of accomplishment in helping our young people, who, through no fault of their own, were struggling in the direst of circumstances. They need and deserve our help.

Warm regards,

John and Mary Thompson (Founders)

SPIRIT NYS

Our Origin Story: We drew inspiration from many areas in our life to create SPIRITNYS. Primarily, we were inspired by our parents, Harold and Helen Thompson, and Florence and Maurice Keefe, born and raised in the city of Rochester, New York. Our parents, despite being born into very modest circumstances, were models of selflessness and kindness. We strive to live out their legacy of supporting others, especially through education. In 1996 we began to assist students who have unique challenges in attending college in Rochester.

Rochester’s latest high school graduation rate for homeless students is 40%. Learning this forced us to realize that it is not just college students, but high school students that are facing unique challenges. Rochester holds a special place in our hearts, as our hometown. We attended the local schools, and we want to see Rochester students thrive. Therefore in 2020 we established SPIRITNYS because we believed SPIRITNYS can improve the life trajectory of many high school students.

Secondly, SPIRITNYS was inspired by the work of Youth On Their Own (YOTO), a charity we contributed to in Tucson Arizona, where we used to reside. YOTO has operated for ~40 years and has enabled many students to graduate from high school. In 2020, YOTO was supporting a caseload of 1800 students. Historically, 82-85% of YOTO students achieve graduation. Comparatively, the national average for homeless student graduation is 60%, and 40% in Rochester.

We hoped to build on our experience, to provide a valuable opportunity in the Rochester area just as YOTO has in Tucson. We believe our efforts in Rochester will bring out those same charitable virtues from the people in this community. Rochester has always been noted for its philanthropic activities and we believe it will embrace the mission of SPIRITNYS.

We have committed to funding SPIRITNYS In Rochester for three years to demonstrate the benefits of our SPIRITNYS  program while building community support and demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach. After three years the success of the charity will be sustained by the community itself through private donations and grants. Our vision is that SPIRITNYS will be a seed organization and our efforts will lead to building chapters in other communities.

Finally, we are grateful to our family members: children, grandchildren, siblings, nieces and nephews, and other family friends. We continue to be inspired by their ability to give unstintingly of their time, talent, energy, and support to make this happen. It has been an amazing, delightful, and humbling process.