Chicago · LA · Everywhere

SPREAD
YOUR WINGS.

A youth movement for young people ages 5–21. We turn pain into theater, dance, and film. We help young people soar, from the block to the world stage.

WE FLY. WE SOAR.Our Story ↓
Youth leaping with joy against a city skyline
Ages 5 — 21
ExpressCreateLeadFlyExpressCreateLeadFly
ExpressCreateLeadFlyExpressCreateLeadFly

Four pillars.
One flight path.

The tools we give every young person who walks through our doors. Each pillar is a wing, together, they fly, then soar.

Express pillar — youth in action
01

Express

Acting, dance, storytelling, circles of unity. Break the silence, your voice is power.

Create pillar — youth in action
02

Create

Screenwriting, filmmaking, the future film festival. Turn your story into cinema.

Lead pillar — youth in action
03

Lead

Mentorship, check-ins, ambassadorship. Lift as you rise , pay it forward, always.

Fly pillar — youth in action
04

Fly

Showcases, performances, travel. From Chicago to LA to the world stage.

Two young girls smiling together at the youth centerThree young boys laughing together at the youth center
The Mission

WE MEET YOUTH WHERE THEY ARE. THEN WE HELP THEM FLY.

Spread Your Wings is a sanctuary for young people of color ages 5 to 21, a place to grieve, to dream, and to build. We work with the kids in Chicago who lost brothers and friends, and the kids in LA who are looking for a stage.

Through theater, dance, screenwriting, leadership circles, parent nights, and a film festival on the way. We give young people the tools to turn their stories into power.

ActingDanceStorytellingScreenwritingMentorshipShowcasesTravel
In Loving Memory

Our Guardian Angels

Spread Your Wings is dedicated to three incredible young men we lost to gun violence in Chicago. They got their wings too soon. Every leap we take, every story we tell, is for them.

Portrait of PHILLIP

PHILLIP

Forever 15

Portrait of Bryson

Bryson

FOREVER 7

Portrait of Hashawn

Hashawn

FOREVER 14

"They gained their wings. Now we spread ours, for them, and for every kid still here, still dreaming, still rising."

The Ambassadors

Pay it forward.
Always.

Every young person we lift becomes a leader. Every leader mentors two more. That's the chain. That's the movement.

→
→
  • ✓4 founding youth ambassadors 
  • ✓Each ambassador mentors two young people
  • ✓Open to youth of color ages 5 to 21
  • ✓Safe spaces for grief, healing & creation
EXPRESSION
Young people leaping beneath the Gateway Arch

Ready to soar?

Whether you're a young person, a parent, a mentor, or a believer, there is a place for you here.

Become an AmbassadorParent Info NightSupport the Vision