05.08.2025
How Treehouse Helps: Mateo Makes Music
In honor of National Foster Care Month, we are sharing day-in-the-life stories from the Treehouse community. These stories are all about how Treehouse helps makes a difference for youth in foster care so they can thrive.
The participant’s name has been changed for this story.
Today, I watched Mateo walk up the bleachers to join the rest of the seniors being recognized for committing to a plan beyond high school. In Mateo’s case, he has committed to one of Washington’s universities with the hope of earning a degree in music education.
I met Mateo at the beginning of his junior year. At that time, he was still unsure of what his future would look like, and sometimes education was the last thing he wanted to talk about. But Mateo and I had one thing in common: music. We had both played in the same high school marching band, and often music was all we could talk about. Over time, collegiate music programs and opportunities gradually began to enter the conversation. By the end of his junior year, Mateo was all in and fully committed to pursuing music.
With the support of Just-in-Time Funding, Mateo enrolled in Running Start through a local community college and experienced his first drum corps summer tour. By senior year, he was even more motivated to continue his own music education and had also started thinking about educating others.
Mateo was recently informed that he earned a spot in the university’s wind ensemble after auditioning back in March, and he’s now preparing to begin his second drum corps tour.
In roles like mine as a Graduation Success Education Specialist, we often only get to plant seeds in the lives of the people we serve. In Mateo’s case, I’m grateful to have been part of the team that surrounded him and watched that seed sprout. His future is bright, and I feel so incredibly lucky to have witnessed his growth over the past two years.
About the Author
Gina Cariño is a Graduation Success Education Specialist who serves the Tri Cities and Othello communities. Gina has been working in social services for about 6 years and began as a Certified Peer Support Specialist (CPC) for the WISe program. She is passionate about supporting youth as they find their voices and advocate for themselves.
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