Today we’d like to introduce you to Jose Yenque.
Jose, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My introduction to San Diego was when back in 2000 I was brought down to film in the award-winning film TRAFFIC. This film also introduced me to San Ysidro as well as Tijuana, Mexico. All this was very interesting for me, I was born and raised in New York City. After the film was released and was such a hit I saw an opportunity to give back and when a friend offered to introduce a group of us actors from LA to visit an orphanage in Tijuana Mexico we jumped at the chance. The kids there were so welcoming and all I could see was that even living in the most challenging condition these young people were doing all they could to come out ahead.
I returned to visit and found myself mentoring, something I never thought I’d ever do. Fast forward the nine yrs turned 18 and were aging out of the orphanage and I saw a need for a program to help them integrate socially and emotionally into the world outside the orphanage. In 2014 I created Arts for a Better Tomorrow, a non-profit organization that offer specialized programs through the arts to help teach the tools needed to heal and transform young people coming from or going through trauma.
After years of working with youth in Los Angeles public schools and Tijuana orphanages and centers, we expanded to San Diego in 2017 partnering with Love Thy Neighbor organization. Expanding to San Diego was inevitable. I returned to the city that changed my life and gave me my big break in the entertainment industry.
Has it been a smooth road?
The big struggle has been getting people on board with the concept that a profession in the arts is a REAL profession and that the arts have the power to transform lives and communities. The arts are the first to go when it comes to budget cuts. It’s a way to shoot yourself in the foot and we all feel the repercussions.
There are not enough programs for youth, senior citizens and I”m talking about the forgotten, well maybe they are not the forgotten, people in the decision-making seats just don’t care. Social-emotional wellness is very important to the future of our communities. No matter what economic status one may have. I know there are many organizations struggling who offer this type of support and I’m fighting along with them.
We’d love to hear more about your organization.
Arts for a Better Tomorrow – ABT brings an alternative rehabilitative and therapeutic arts-based program that is like no other in North America. ABT has undertaken the challenge to positively impact the lives of underprivileged youth through the arts in a unique format devised by actor and director José Yenque.
He saw a need to address the transition into adulthood of abandoned youth, using the arts as tools to help them overcome traumas and learning barriers. Thus, ABT is ensuring that they are better prepared for life. ABT gained nonprofit status in 2014, but for 12 years prior had been running successful independent and privately funded programs in Southern California and Baja California.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Non-profits, the arts, the entertainment industry, underserved youth? Oooohhhh yea, there will always be shifts and changes. There will also be more challenges to overcome which is actually not always a bad thing. You know what they say “a challenge is an opportunity to learn and grow” and I’m sure I”m not alone in this. “Bring it on” I always say.
Contact Info:
- Phone: (619) 777-8993
- Email: info@ArtsBT.org
- Instagram: Artsbt
- Facebook: @ArtsForaBetterTomorrow
- Twitter: ArtsBT
Image Credit:
Isaac Brown, Ivan Gomez & Irving Baez.
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