MANCHESTER, NH – On any given night, in the Manchester area alone, an estimated 300 youth are homeless for a range of reasons such as abuse, neglect, mental illness, substance abuse, strained relationships, gender or sexual identity, and poverty. They are at great risk of being abused or exploited, and suffer many other consequences.
Last year, Child and Family Services, a statewide, private, nonprofit organization, served as a lifeline and a game-changer form more than 2,000 youth throughout New Hampshire who were experiencing homelessness.
That is why, on Friday, March 24, Child and Family Services of NH will stage its 3rd annual CFS SleepOut, at Stanton Plaza in downtown Manchester.
The CFS SleepOut 2017 is a solemn event that brings the community together for one night out in the cold, to raise collective community consciousness about the plight of homeless youth, show solidarity, and raise funds to help stabilize and transform the lives of youth who become homeless. Child and Family Services is on a mission to end youth homelessness once and for all, by the year 2020.
CFS is unique in its continuum of services to this population. Through its Street Outreach Program, Runaway & Homeless Youth Program, Transitional Living Program, and the Youth Resource Center, the agency is on the front lines and behind the scenes, providing youth with the basic elements for survival, and the stuff with which to succeed.
A CFS street team mobilizes for 30 hours each week on the streets reaching out to at-risk youth with survival aid, building trust, and engaging youth in services.
The agency also operates a drop-in center at 326 Lincoln St., Manchester, where youth can access food, clothing, hot showers, laundry facilities, a computer lab, and get connected with community services such as shelter and medical care.
As well, CFS offers mental health counseling and substance abuse treatment, and helps youth with completing or pursuing their education, searching or training for jobs, and can provide or assist with housing.
In Manchester, Dover, Concord and Littleton, CFS operates transitional living homes that provide supportive housing, life skills training, and support services to young adults who are homeless or transitioning out of foster care.
CFS also works in tandem with local police departments, schools, and other service providers on prevention, intervention, and treatment, forming a social safety net of sorts, in order to guide youth toward safety, stability, self-sufficiency, and success.
In this third year, the CFS SleepOut is open to 100 sleepers who each commit to raising at least $1,000. Businesses and employee groups, civic organizations, unions, women’s groups, and other organizations, are welcome to form sleeper teams. The overall fund-raising goal is $180,000. Proceeds will support the agency’s services to local homeless, at-risk youth.
“There has never been a better time to stage an event like this,” says Maria Gagnon, senior vice president of Child and Family Services. “With the needs of at-risk youth and the complexity of their problems on the rise, community resources and opportunities on the decline, and the future of young lives and communities at stake, we’re at a critical juncture. We must be creative, proactive, and fearless in how we’re going to address youth homelessness in New Hampshire.”
To learn more about the CFS SleepOut 2017, to register as a sleeper, and/or to support the agency’s work with homeless, at-risk youth, visit www.cfsnh.org, or call 603-518-4156.
HOMELESS YOUTH IN NH – FACT SHEET
Who are runaway and homeless youth:
- Late teens to early 20s
- Runaway and homeless youth find themselves on the street most often because to them, it seems a lesser of evils (i.e. abusive or unhealthy environment at home), or that they had no choice. The majority of youth in the CFS runaway and homeless youth programs report that:
o Their parents told them to leave or knew they were leaving and didn’t care.
o They did not plan their departure and had $10 or less when they left home.
o They have been affected by substance abuse and/or mental health issues.
o They are or have been involved in unhealthy, violent relationships.
- Straddle between youth and adulthood: Although they are rarely treated as a distinct population, they are unique developmentally, emotionally, socially, and economically.
Why is it so important to address problems youth face at this point in life:
- Recent brain research suggests the ages between 17 and 24 is a period of robust brain development. This presents an opportunity with emerging adults – a developmental sweet spot – just like the first 5 years of life are a critical period of childhood development.
- Decisions and experiences that occur during this period have long-lasting implications on an individual’s economic security, health, and well-being.
- Emerging adults are key contributors to our workforce and economy, and we need them to be successful for the financial health of our state.
- Marginalized young adults are much less likely than others to transition to adulthood successfully.
Current trends in the population:
- Increased numbers of youth who are living in generational poverty.
- Increase in complexity of youth issues including severe substance use, severe and untreated mental illness, lack of education, lack of job readiness skills, lack of interpersonal skills, and pregnancy and parenting issues.
- These lead to more extended periods of homeless due to the barriers to overcome in order to become independent
Gaps in the system/ needs:
- Age appropriate and developmentally appropriate services for this population recognizing that the adult system is not adequate for young emerging adults.
o This includes sustainable funding within the state to provide emergency shelter opportunities to meet the unique needs of this population
- Job training and job readiness programs that focus on teaching young people the interpersonal skills that are required for them to gain employment and be able to maintain employment.
- Livable wage opportunities for young adults – with older adults staying in the workforce longer and individuals with college degrees and work experience taking entry level, minimum wage jobs, youth are being pushed out of the workforce. Food service and retail positions are not even available to them anymore.
- Educational opportunities that provide an ability to earn income or support a youth’s basic needs – often education is passed up in order to attempt to work 2 or 3 minimum wage jobs for survival.
- Substance use services that are readily available and are low barrier
- Affordable housing opportunities within NH.