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Frisco event informs residents about homeless youth problem: Collin County home to many young people who live in poverty
From Staff Reports
In honor of Homeless Awareness Week, the Collin County Homeless Coalition and City House hosted an event with speakers and an informative panel discussion about the homeless youth problem in Collin County along with a spotlight on what can be done to solve it.
“See Me Now: Teens Without Homes” hosted about 150 attendees last Friday in Frisco, including community leaders across Collin County who are committed to homeless youth. Theresa Keenan, the executive director of City House gave some startling facts at the event about the homeless youth issue in Collin County.
“But what is encouraging is that this community is very committed to solving the problem,” Keenan said. “Collin County could serve as a model for how to mobilize social services, government and the faith community to help struggling youth overcome homelessness.”
“We have to focus on City House for both runaway care and transitional living for our homeless youth,” said Cynthia McCrann Wheless, chairman of the Collin County Juvenile Board. “No other organization in the area is doing this as well as City House who takes both CPS and non CPS youth.
“People have the misperception that teenagers are self sufficient. But every kid who is homeless has a severe need.”
Jennifer Patten, program director at City House also offered this perspective: “There is not one group or agency that can do everything, so partnership is critical. We also need to educate our legislators,” she added.
Christopher Green, a minister at Highland Oaks Church in Plano and a panelist at Friday’s event, implored people of faith to be involved in local issues.
“Cooperation among the faith community is critical,” Green said. “From a faith community’s perspective, we are finding that a lot of folks just aren’t aware of the problem.”
Often the schools are the first to be aware of a youth that is homeless. Teenagers “couch surf” while going from one friend’s couch to another in order to stay in school and try to keep things together.
Stacy Brown, housing and grants administrator for the city of Frisco, said, “The only thing that is stable in these kids’ lives is the school.”
Clearly schools can serve as the first line of defense and the primary organization to identify homeless youth.
“Training our students and giving them more guidance on how to tell when a friend actually is homeless can be a critical factor,” said Mia Bennett, director of support programs at the Frisco Independent School District who also served as a panelist.
The next meeting of the Collin County Homeless Coalition will be at 9 a.m. Dec. 6 at City Hall in Plano. The meeting will be held in the building inspections training room. For more information about City House, visit www.cityhouse.org.
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