The federal stimulus package will hit home for the local LGBT community, thanks to a grant bequested to a Philadelphia nonprofit that works to curtail youth homelessness.
Valley Youth House, a local organization that provides comprehensive services to homeless and at-risk youth, was notified last month that its grant proposal to launch LGBT programming was approved, and that it would receive $199,888 to implement the plan.
Valley Youth was one of five Philadelphia-based organizations chosen for competitive grants from the federal Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program. The city will receive an additional $2 million for homeless-prevention efforts.
Bill Motsavage, director of Valley Youth’s Independent Living Program, said the agency applied for the grant after noticing the high volume of LGBT youth seeking assistance from the organization. Valley Youth does operate an LGBT support group for youth, but this marks the first time the organization will implement a program designed specifically to get LGBT teens on their feet, he said.
Motsavage noted that LGBT youth often face much higher levels of parental rejection than heterosexuals their age — heightening their risk for homelessness — and that, if they do find themselves separated from their families, their growth may be further stymied in mainstream rehabilitation settings.
“These young people face a lot of additional barriers than other kids who may be homeless,” Motsavage said. “They’re more likely to be picked on or harassed by other tenants their age in shelters or other programs and may also feel less safe in adult shelters. When this funding opportunity arose, this was something that we’d had in our minds, so we thought it was the right time to go ahead with it.”
The new program will have several layers, Motsavage said.
Valley Youth will recruit a full-time counselor to oversee the implementation of the agency’s plan, which will focus first on housing education.
“One of the things we noticed with the general population of 18- to 21-year-olds is that they all want to have their own apartment, but a lot of times they don’t really know much about what that entails,” Motsavage said.
Valley Youth will host a series of workshops for LGBT individuals, ages 18-21, to walk them through the process of apartment-hunting and renting their own space, with such topics as budgeting, credit scores, roommate searches and security deposits, as well as discussions on seemingly commonplace issues like how to handle a clogged toilet or a pest infestation, which Motsavage said many young adults renting their first apartment are often in the dark about.
Program organizers will go out and “pound the pavement” with the kids to find apartments, and will pay first and second month’s rent, as well as the security deposit; if the lessees successfully maintain the space for the first year, Valley Youth will also take care of the last month’s rent for the year.
Motsavage said the agency will also assist youth in enrolling in school, attaining GEDs, finding employment tailored to their background and skills and obtaining health insurance.
“We’re coming at this with a holistic approach,” he said. “There are a lot of factors that need to come together for youth to succeed, and oftentimes families do this, but if they don’t have that support, we want to step in and help. It’ll be a combination of education, guidance and financial support, as well as emotional support.”
The program will serve approximately 45 young adults over a three-year period, with training sessions tailored for eight-10 at a time. Valley Youth will take referrals from such organizations as The Attic Youth Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Adolescent Initiative — which serves youth who are HIV-positive or at a high risk for the disease — and youth shelter Covenant House. Valley Youth also plans to partner with the city’s Office of Supportive Housing to help identify youth who would benefit from the program.
Motsavage said the first training session will be held in December.
For more information, visit www.valleyyouthhouse.org.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].