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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 20, 2001)
2 g Just «ait ' aprii 2 d 2001 LIVING ON THE EDGE Continued from Page 2 7 Outside In provides health care, counseling, referral services and other needs. “Outside In was started 30 years ago by lesbian separatists for free health care for homeless people,” Favor says. The health clinic offers Western, Chinese and naturopathic medicine; HIV and dental care; and a needle exchange program for IV drug users. These services are free for homeless people and discounted for low-income individuals. Outside In also provides crisis counseling and activities to build skills and promote alter natives to living on the streets. “We work out goals like housing and jobs,” Favor explains. “We do referrals, job training and other skills.” Transitional housing also is available at the YWCA. Later this year, Outside In will move to new facilities up the street, where all programs will be under one roof. Another component of its services is VO IC ES, a weekly support group for homeless sexual minority or questioning youth. Last year, 57 people attended the meetings. The HIV+ Youth Housing Program pro vides two transitional beds for kids who are HIV-positive. They also are given medical, educational and employment assistance for independent living. New Avenues serves kids younger than 18, such as Brandy, Stephanie and Chantel. Pro grams include a multiservice center, street out reach, drop-in services, education, case manage ment, medical, food and shelter services. To sleep, homeless kids use youth shelters— SMYRC works closely with Outside In, espe cially with the HIV prevention programs, and has a case manager who works one-on-one with the youth. Two foster homes collaborate with the Boys and Girls Aid Society. The youth targeted for the foster home pro gram aren’t so much street-affiliated, Beige says. "W hen kids are entrenched in the street culture, they aren’t likely to do well in foster homes because there are rules.” I n i m m XN I K v .... But to survive m \ IO INDIMMI M S W IIO IIAVK t O V U M M I V D IM K m i n. on the streets, kids k a s i i f d . s m > ti < m > \ k i * i / i n lift: need more than s u m OF OHI! KS. just the youth ser o t »NIDI IN « I l 1 NO I DNltKK l i o n INDIMMI \l S lONl.FF.POH vices. They need The Seattle-based Pride Foundation recently presented Outside In a $1,000 grant HVNI.Ol » ON IIII SI 1‘RFAHSKS each other. U II K HOI KMIK III KIM, for a mural at its new housing facility UFFKI NON. “We are family \OI VM» I hi vskk I* i o I I o t here,” C hantel resource information and clothing foi or the streets themselves. “I have squatted in Il VOI DO NOI I KAM Mil Wil l says. “It’s not like parks, Southeast Portland, and I couch-surf,” homeless kids. HI X K K I M I D F O K f| tFM*\ HSI M, . MU II W 1 HKKN VKNI l>. that at home. I Although the shelters offer a clean, Chantel says. have found a bond She prefers squatting the best. “We squatted safe environment for kids to sleep, they down here, the love and caring.” under a bridge, but the cops busted us. It was lack adequate facilities for transgendered youth. Stephanie agrees. “We take care of each nice—only people we knew were squatting “One of the biggest challenges in our shelters is there. As long as we aren’t destroying anything, sleeping accommodations, especially for trans other.” Fonner street youth who now have a job and gender kids,” Kerr notes. we should be able to stay there.” For example, biological males still must sleep apartment haven’t forgotten their less fortunate She, Brandy and Stephanie also sleep at the in male dorms even if they identify as female. To friends. “They come back and take care of us,” Porchlight Youth Shelter, which is housed in the same building as Greenhouse. It allows alleviate this problem, some shelters have sepa Chantel says. “One kid— he works downtown— he comes around with a pocketful of change.” rate rooms for privacy; others partition off areas. youth to drop in anytime to sleep, while the This family also makes the streets seem safer. For socialization needs, homeless kids turn to neighboring Streetlight is more strict; youth “It’s very, very few times I have been alone only can sleep there at night and must be in case the Sexual Minority Youth Recreation Center. downtown and scared,” Chantel says. “Within “There is recreation, usually ftxxl, kids can sleep management. Janus Youth Services is the umbrella for on the couches, scxdalize with peers, do home five minutes, you see someone you know,” about 20 different services for youth in the Port work," says Kathy Beige, program manager for Stephanie agrees. But there are rules on the streets; fierce loy land area. These include Porchlight, Streetlight, Vanguard Youth Services, which oversees some of SMYRC’s programs. She estimates about 19 alty is demanded. Chantel tells the story of a a transitional housing program and the outreach newly homeless youth stealing from another kid. program Yellow Brick Road. Volunteers roam percent of the youth who use the center are “O ther kids threw him off the bridge,” she homeless. the streets at night carrying first aid, hygiene, Call today for a free qualification over the phone “From stru d els to noodles, w ording's a d ream in m y n e w ly remodeled kitchen... / needed more room to First Time Buyers ♦ FHA/VA Loans add cooking classes to Self-Employed ♦ Complicated Borrowers my catering business but Bankruptcies & Foreclosures ♦ Credit Problems I dreaded the thought of Investment Properties ♦ Pre-approvals refinancing to do it. 100% Financing Programs Luckily, I Was referred to Christine. 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