By Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor
Worcester Youth & Family Counseling Services will mark its 50th anniversary this year with a host of celebrations and fundraisers.
The series of occasions and events recognizing the service’s quarter-century milestone will culminate in a 50th Anniversary Celebration on Oct. 11, 2025 at Mariner’s Country Down.
“I’m really proud to be part of a 50-year celebration,” said Executive Director Jennifer Leggour. “I think Worcester Youth & Family has had its ups and downs, but has endured the test of time.”
Worcester Youth & Family’s story began in 1975, when a group of students asked for counseling services that were not associated with any agency or school. From there, a counseling center was formed in cooperation with Shore Up! and Salisbury State College, now Salisbury University.
“That’s how Worcester Youth & Family started,” Leggour said, “to serve that need.”
Over time, the organization has reformed and expanded to include free counseling, mentoring and family support programs. Today, Worcester Youth & Family offers clinical services – regardless of an individual’s ability to pay – as well as youth mentoring, resource navigation and a Berlin Youth Club. Leggour said the agency helps numerous community members throughout the year.
“It has expanded over the years,” Leggour said. “However, the core of providing access to mental health and support remains the same.”
Leggour said Worcester Youth & Family will kick off its 50th celebration in January with a $50, 50/50 raffle, which will continue through much of the year. The drawing, she said, will take place at the Oct. 11 anniversary event, which officials are hoping will be attended by the organization’s founder, Barry Johansson.
“Hopefully, the pot will accumulate throughout the year,” she said.
Leggour added that the organization will also host 50 various events and fundraisers throughout 2025. Those events, she said, would include the agency’s Shine on the Shore Luau and its Every Children Needs fund.
Leggour said additional information will be posted on the Worcester Youth & Family website – gowoyo.org – and on social media pages as it becomes available.
“We’re hoping to have a lot of activities and fundraising events throughout the year and highlighting the organization in that process,” she said.
For more information about Worcester Youth and Family’s events and programs, call 410-641-4598, or email shine@gowoyo.org.
“Worcester Youth and Family has been able to endure the test of time and stay true to its original goal of increasing access to mental health and social support services,” Leggour said. “This year is the time to thank our partners, supporters, and staff (both former and current) and celebrate this amazing milestone.”