The trick will be figuring it out on her own.

When Dorothy turned 18 last month, she "aged out" of the foster-care system. No longer a ward of the state, the Orlando teen suddenly had to fend for herself for everything from housing to schoolwork.

But she is about to gain an ally in the world. A new program is finding mentors so she and other youths will have at least one person to help them navigate their way into adulthood.

"We the people of Florida became the legal parents of these kids" by taking them into care, said Gerard Glynn, an Orlando law professor and youth advocate. "We have to be able to take care of them. Parenting doesn't end at 18."

Florida boots children from the state system as soon as they turn 18 if they haven't been adopted. The youths are considered legal adults, even though many are in high school when their birthdays arrive.

On their own, they find a small misstep, such as not putting their name on a lease when living with roommates, can become a major crisis later, advocates said.

That's why dozens of volunteers and agencies have worked since last spring to start the program. The need is urgent: There are 120 youths between 18 and 23 in Orange and Osceola counties who already have outgrown the foster-care system.

Another 157 will turn 18 in the coming year, according to statistics from Family Services of Metro Orlando, which oversees child welfare in the two counties.

"They can just get lost if they don't have someone," said Deadra Martin, an administrator at Family Services.

The agency is still in search of the hundreds of mentors it says it needs. But soon, 25 of those youths will have someone.

Family Services and City of Life, a nonprofit foundation, found a group of black engineers in Orlando who, having gone through background checks and training, agreed to meet with their charges at least once a week for the next year.

The mentors will meet 25 youths in need for the first time on Dec. 6. By early January, they will be paired off.

Dorothy is among the lucky ones in the first batch to find a mentor.

She has already been fortunate -- going from a group home to rooming with another young woman who "aged out,' and finding strength from her older sister and Living Waters Church. But she hopes for someone to guide her to her goals.

"I have been called to be a pastor," Dorothy said. "I really need some help figuring out what I'm going to do to get there."

Someone needs to help her figure out how to bring up her grades and catch up on lost school time, after being taken into the system a year and a half ago.

She is also hoping for someone willing to share some of their life with her, so she can get to know them as well.

"People don't know how much they can mean to one other person," Dorothy said. "Sometimes just hearing someone's voice and knowing they're there is enough to make you go on."