Knit One, Pearl Two

The other day I was walking through the kitchen area in our Emergency Shelter for Teens. One of the boys was doing a macramé project so I stopped to talk with him about it. I mentioned I was learning to knit. He said he always wanted to learn. I happened to have my knitting in the car so I brought it in to show him. He was very interested and asked many questions. That night I told Ann the woman who is teaching me to knit this story. She had mentioned a few weeks earlier that she would be happy to teach the teens to knit. I hadn’t thought there would be any interest on their part. Now there is. Ann is coming to the Shelter on Friday as a volunteer to give Mark his first knitting lesson. I will let you know how it goes.

Gina Cocomello

I’m a 17 year old who has problems with my father

Each year, our teen shelter provides support to hundreds of teens, both over the phone and in person. As a staff member, I frequently talk to teens, families, and others who work with teens about the benefits of our program. But I can’t say it nearly as well as someone who is in the program:

“My situation is clear and simple. Pretty much I’m a 17 year old who has various problems with my father. We have disagreements over any and everything there is which kind of explains my situation….

I wouldn’t say I’m homeless, but at the same time I would because … going back home with my father is no longer an option, so independence is definitely the key to survival.

Since I’ve been here at the Alternative House I’ve been extremely comfortable and I feel as though this was the home and environment I needed to be an even better person than what I’m already am. Even meeting new kids and listening to different stories and situations is definitely cool. The staff here have reached out to me on countless occasions and definitely considered me part of their family. The help received has been absolutely amazing, I feel like the attention is all for me and they pretty much provide you with an extra hand whenever you need it….Alternative House is definitely teen friendly and if you’re having countless problems at home, or if you know home is no longer an option I would recommend A.H. especially if independence is needed throughout your struggles and obstacles A.H. will definitely work.”

- Shelter Resident

An Alternative to Homelessness

The first young man who entered our Homeless Youth Initiative has become my “poster child” for telling people about what a difference this program makes in people’s lives.

“John” was 18 and a junior in high school when his father kicked him out of the house. His Dad had a substance abuse problem and often acted erratically. John went from friend to friend, “couch surfing” until he ran out of friends in late August; just before the start of his senior year. A social worker placed him in a small adult homeless shelter.

His very first night there John was propositioned by his roommate. The next morning, he fled the shelter and was sleeping in the bleachers of his high school football stadium because that was where he felt safest.

Alternative House has an emergency shelter for teenagers that provides a safe haven to runaway, homeless and abused young people 13-17-years old, but John was 18. We were able to get a waiver of the rules and brought John in to safety.

Working with the faith community, we located a woman who would rent a room to John. It was close to his high school, his girlfriend and his job, but John couldn’t make enough money to cover the rent and continue to attend school. Through Alternative House’s Homeless Youth Initiative, we were able to pay $325 a month towards his $500 rent. John paid the rest.

John stayed in school and graduated on time. He is working full-time as a car salesman and his employers love him. He’s also going to community college. The small investment this community made in John has resulted in a young man with a future versus a homeless high school drop-out. It also means we have a successful citizen not someone in our shelters or jail. Everyone wins here.

Judith Dittman is executive director of Alternative House, the abused and homeless children’s refuge.

Three weeks is such a brief time to help

Teens come to the shelter in crisis and we have up to three weeks to foster solutions to the issues they are dealing with in their adolescent lives. As a therapist working with the teens at the crisis shelter, my hope is that we plant seeds of change. Three weeks is such a brief time and while we try to begin the process of assisting our residents to do things differently, hearing from former residents affirms the work we do. Recently, I received an email and a letter from two former residents and I wanted to share some excerpts with you to show you how our counseling services can influence one's future.

"I was a resident in the alternative house in 2005. When I was there I talked to a counselor about getting some gang-related tattoos removed. I was told about a program called Skin Deep. I really don't know too much about the program. Of course at that time I was 17 years old and I didn't pay to much attention to it. Now I'm 22 years old and after the two weeks that I was there I decieded to change my life around. Your program gave me a little push to improve my life. It wasn't easy, but I did graduate High School. I have a full time job at CVS/Pharmacy and I'm going to start my first year in NOVA in the spring." Karen

"I'm writing this letter to thank you for the services you all provided me with. The two weeks I was there yall encouraged me to better myself thanks to the counseling. Thank you for helping me when I needed it. Yall changed the way I act, feel and I really want to go to college now." Jerome age 16

Susie Guido, LPC
Therapist
Alternative House

Learning to communicate

“Liz”, a 13 year old girl from Fairfax County, came to our Emergency Shelter for Teens recently due to conflict with her biological father. As the oldest of three siblings, Liz struggled with effectively communicating with her father, a single parent, about the difficulties of growing up female without a mother figure in her life. Alternative House staff were able to refer Liz for a psychological evaluation where she received an appropriate mental health diagnosis. Liz and her father actively participated in family sessions where they were able to begin exploring how they could improve their relationship and communication. Liz was able to return home to live with her biological father and will begin individual and family counseling soon.

Are you a teen or do you know a teen who needs help? Alternative House provides free confidential counseling and referrals to teens and parents. Call 1-800-SAY-TEEN or 1-800 729-8336.