Joey Scott was referred to Family Tree Gemini by Jefferson County Human Services in April of 2001 at the age of fifteen. At the time of his referral, he was living with his mother and younger brother. Joey described his living situation as stressful and would often lash out angrily at his mother and brother by pushing, shouting and throwing things.

After his admission to Family Tree Gemini, Joey began to work through some of the issues causing his anger and aggression. After being at Gemini, he went back home but again experienced some of the same problems and was readmitted to Family Tree Gemini in October of that same year. During his two stays at Family Tree Gemini, Joey enjoyed listening to staff member Bret Sloan play guitar in the evenings. Bret began teaching Joey how to play the guitar and he found that it was an excellent outlet for his anger.

While attending Gemini’s on-grounds school, Joey took a philosophy class which stimulated his interest in philosophy. Several staff members remember Joey using Socratic arguments in an attempt to get out of doing chores and schoolwork. Joey again returned home in December 2001 -- for good. He said that Gemini helped him most by providing a safe environment, away from the stress he was feeling at home so that he could work through his anger issues.

Today Joey is attending school at the University of Denver on a grant awarded by the Daniels Fund and, he is studying philosophy. He is also on the Board of Directors for Youth for Change which is a non-profit organization that seeks to get dropouts back into the education system. He also volunteers his time at shelters for the homeless.