Wind Youth Services: Helping the Young and Homeless In America

There are over half a million homeless people in the United States today. Two and a half million of those are children and of that amount, over half a million alone live in the state of California. This translates to tens of thousands of youth in the Golden State who don’t see many gilded edges in their own lives. The future looks bleak for these young people, but at Wind Youth Services in Sacramento, California a warm welcoming breeze is blowing and you can help. Through the help of Donate a Car and the generosity of individuals, old cars are turned into warm meals, soft beds, and an education that helps break the cycle of homelessness. When you donate your car you are doing more than cleaning up your driveway, you’re saving a life.

Meeting Youth Right Where They Are

As the only program serving homeless youth in Sacramento, California, Wind Youth Services has a big job to accomplish. To be young and homeless in America today is to be 8 times more likely to be sexually abused, 9 times more likely to contract HIV, and 80% of homeless teens admit to using drugs or alcohol to self-medicate for emotional and physical trauma. Homeless teens are an incredibly vulnerable portion of our population. Education and skills training are essential for helping them to improve their chances for a better life, but those opportunities seem like a world away when you’re sleeping on a street, don’t know where your next meal will come from, and for over 40% of all homeless teens, have been kicked out of your own home. Wind Youth Services conquers this barrier by providing a street outreach program that delivers:

• Shelter

• Hot Meals

• Transportation

• Clothing Closet & Personal Hygiene packs

• Case Management

• Counseling

• Basic Medical Care

• Referrals & Connections to other resources

Wind Youth Services Drop-In Center

Above and beyond providing for basic care on the street Wind Youth Services also runs a drop-in center where homeless youth can access the following services:

• Access to shelter

• Warm meals

• Peer Support

• California ID’s & Birth Certificates

• laundry services

• clothing closet

• employment assistance

• educational assistance

• case management services

• Creative Workshops

• Therapeutic Groups

By getting to the heart of what put them in their homeless situation in the first place the youth can be empowered to overcome those challenges with the help of non-judgmental assistance and the physical needs which are crucial to an improved life.

How Your Contribution Helps

By donating your used vehicle to Donate a Car you can help to alleviate some of the pain and rejection that these homeless youth feel. The programs provided through Wind Youth Services help to get at-risk youth a safe place to be, separate from the homeless adult population where they are in greater danger for more abuse, disease, and crime. If you have an unused vehicle taking up space in your driveway or garage, please consider turning that vehicle into a safe place to stay and warm meals for homeless youth.