“Ian” was a typical carefree teen until his adopted mother passed away. Almost immediately his life began to turn upside down. His mother’s new husband was unable to maintain the mortgage payments, and they lost the house.
Ian then moved in with a pregnant family member and her family. Living with two adults and five other kids in a two-bedroom apartment was no easy task. With no place to sleep but a walk-in closet and little food to go around, Ian began spending more and more time at friends’ houses after school. His grades suffered, and he often wandered the hallways at school as he struggled to focus.
A school social worker became aware of the situation and called Alternative House, now known as Second Story. Alternative House’s Homeless Youth Initiative, now known as Second Story for Homeless Youth, helped Ian find a room in a house with a family near his school. We provided a rent stipend to the family who took him and our counselors provided help with budgeting, time management, and recovering from the emotional upheaval of homelessness. Ian was able to get back on track at school, took advantage of free tutoring services and graduated on time with the rest of his class. Ian is now back on track and enrolled in vocational training.