Vancouver Foundation

Yosef Spivak has found a home, and stability, at the Broadway Youth Resource Centre. "This place means everything to me. I'd be either homeless or dead without it." – Yosef Spivak y home BY DENISE RUDNICKI | PHOTO TIFFANY BROWN COOPER and out of homelessness. Some estimates put the number at 700 or even higher. These young adults are exposed to significantly more physical abuse, sickness, injury and mental health problems than their peers with stable housing. And they can each cost society anywhere from $55,000 to $135,000 a year in public services like policing, health care, emergency services and jails. There are many reasons why young people are vulnerable to the risk of homelessness. High housing costs; relatively low wages; lack of education; lack of employment and mental health supports, particularly for youth who have spent much of their lives in foster care or disconnected and isolated from a stable network of friends and family – all these factors make finding and keeping a home very difficult. "Homelessness is one of the most isolating experiences a person can endure," says Mark Gifford, director of grants and community initiatives at Vancouver Foundation. "Our region still relies on too many wet blanket, bus stop, train track and couch surfing options for kids trying to grow up and make sense of a world that has been cheap with love and opportunity." It's the wasted opportunity that Kristine Kredba regrets. "When you're living in fear, all the wonderful opportunities to become exceptional or even just to become a regular contributing member of society . . . well, it just can't happen." She has seen what can happen when a young person suddenly has a place to live and can start to think about the future. "We have kids who have been in our programs who are in college, in university, who had their own kids returned to them and are good parents. Once they can exhale and stop worrying, they make plans." Addressing youth homelessness is one of Vancouver Foundation's priorities. In 2012, this will mean more than $1million in grants to community partnerships, public policy, and community leadership strategies that connect young people with housing and support. "Everyone deserves a first chance, let alone a second one," says Gifford. "For young people, connecting to a safe, accessible and affordable home is a foundation for life – a base camp for climbing new mountains." Two years ago, Yosef Spivak was teetering on the brink of homelessness. He was kicked out of an apartment, slept on couches, even spent one night on the streets of Surrey when he got lost looking for a safe house. Then he found the Broadway Youth Resource Centre. "I was looking for a bathroom. Instead, I found a program that saved me." He is currently living in subsidized housing in one of the BYRC's buildings for youth aged 16 to 24. He gardens, planting and tending roses, tomatoes and herbs. And he's planning his future. He would like to go to culinary school, unless his love for the Broadway Youth Resource Centre wins the battle for his heart. "I would love to be a youth worker here. This place means everything to me. I'd be either homeless or dead without it." VF For more information on how you can help stem the tide of youth homelessness in metro Vancouver and find out how you can have your donation matched, call Kristin Helgason at 604-629-5186. Spring 2012 I Vancouver Foundation l page 11 p10-11_Way Home.indd 11 6/6/12 10:53:44 AM en in " m d

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