According to the National Runaway Switchboard, every day between 1.3 and 2.8 million homeless youth live on the streets of America. One out of every seven children will run away before the age of 18. Here in Las Vegas, advocates estimate there are about 400 homeless youth on the streets every day.
Though films and TV may portray running away as something glamorous, reality is much more dismal. Teens often stay in parks or washes, not just a friend’s house. And while many wonder why these teens can’t just go home, the truth is that over 80 percent are physically and/or sexually abused and so don’t have that option.
But there is help.
Street Teens is a nonprofit volunteer-based organization in Las Vegas devoted to serving the need of homeless, abandoned and at-risk youth, ages 12-21.
Street Teens help young people in many ways. According to Lisa Preston, the director of Street Teens, every case is looked at individually.
“Some kids need help getting enrolled in school, some kids need help with employment. We do whatever we can to help each and every teen,” Preston says.
Because of the high percentage of abused youth that Street Teens works with, reunification with teen families does not happen often.
“Most of the time our kids would rather stay on the streets than be returned to parents that are abusive,” Preston adds.
Thus, Street Teens help in other ways. With school officials having already identitified 3,400 homeless students in Las Vegas, Street Teens tries to make sure they stay on the road to graduation.
“We have a connection with adult education so we can refer the kids for free to complete their GED or, if they are young enough, to be enrolled in school. We work with the Title 1 Hope Program [the homeless outreach program] to get them enrolled,” Preston explains.
There are many things high school students can do to help the homeless teens that have reached out to Street Teens. Every time Street Teens is searched online at www.goodsearch.com, the website donates to the charities and schools designated by its users. Users need to type “Street Teens” in the GoodSearch box and click “Verify.”
For students who want to get even more involved, Street Teens is always looking for assistance.
“Our biggest need is funding and volunteers! Our volunteers do need to be 18 or older to volunteer with the kids. We are also in need of gift cards to be used to purchase Christmas gifts for the kids this year,” says Preston.