A new Youth Program at Haven for Hope has been around about a year and it's already showing big success. More youth are sticking around, graduating school, and getting into housing.
– “I ended up here because I ran out of money. I slept under a restaurant. I was starving,” said 20-year-old Kyle Young.Two months ago he was placed in the new youth program for people ages 18-24. It’s a full-circle moment.
KSAT was at Haven for Hope a little over a year ago, interviewing students who finished high school while living at the shelter.Now, a year later, we were able to see the common room and dorms and talk with the clients.On the other side, a communal dorm with space for 24 people. The resources are brought to them. Right next door, there are spaces where they can do counseling, case management, or even pick up some hygiene items.“I think it’s a comfort thing. And with that comfort comes safety. We started the program, and through word of mouth, young adults started hearing about it and coming here. Where now we are at capacity,” said Senior Director of Case Management Jessie Burdon.Before the youth program, she said only 10% of young adults at Haven for Hope left with housing.There are workforce and skills classes, clients are staying in the program longer, and more of them are getting GEDs or diplomas. “We can help them obtain things like birth certificates, which can be a particular challenge,” Burdon said. Right now, Young is working to get an identification card so he can move on to the rest of his goals. “I’m more of a solution-oriented person. And so, at least with the young adults, they’re young. And so they know that this is not like living; this is survival,” he said.“Even though it’s still a supportive environment, you still got to carve your own path,” he said. Young already has a high school degree and college experience, so next he’ll get a job, and will be on the priority list for housing.Haven for HopeCourtney Friedman anchors KSAT’s weekend evening shows and reports during the week. Her ongoing Loving in Fear series confronts Bexar County’s domestic violence epidemic. She joined KSAT in 2014 and is proud to call the SA and South Texas community home. She came to San Antonio from KYTX CBS 19 in Tyler, where she also anchored & reported.Adam Barraza is a photojournalist at KSAT 12 and an El Paso native. He interned at KVIA, the local ABC affiliate, while still in high school. He then moved to San Antonio and, after earning a degree from San Antonio College and the University of the Incarnate Word, started working in news. He’s also a diehard Dodgers fan and an avid sneakerhead.
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