Michael G. Roach

Inner City Youth Services is a program of Child and Family, Inc., a private non-profit agency in Knoxville, TN, which provides treatment for victims of sexual and physical abuse as well as parenting and home crisis programs. Inner City Youth Services, which was founded by Michael Roach in 1982, encourages children to seek hope and safety through education. As coordinator, Mr. Roach has dedicated this program to the protection and well-being of children from the inner city of Knoxville, TN.

Twice a week, Mr. Roach provides the children in the program with transportation to the agency, for tutoring and activities. He also visits them in their homes and shows a genuine concern for their education.

If Mr. Roach sees any signs of abuse, neglect, or potential abuse in any of the children, he immediately refers them to the appropriate program or social services agency for help.

Operating solely on donations, Mr. Roach is able to coordinate four all-expense-paid out of town trips per year for the children in his program. Three trips are overnight and one trip is eight days. If children need clothing or special items for these trips, Mr. Roach sees to it that money is provided to take them shopping prior to the trip. In order to participate in the trips, each child is required to improve his grade point average 1/2 grade point each semester until he or she has and maintains at least a "B" average.

Neither Mr. Roach nor any of the volunteers that make up his program staff receive monetary compensation.