YOUTH PROFILE

For a city with seemingly no homelessness problem, the shelters, food banks and drop-in services in St. John’s are constantly being stretched for resources.

Youth in crisis face challenges that are hard to imagine. Often having left home situations that are abusive, unstable or inappropriate, at 16 years old they’ve left their entire support system with no means of income or assistance. Very quickly while living on the street youth fall into street culture and the issues can multiply – drug addictions, prostitution, crime can seem like easy solutions to the poverty, isolation and hopelessness that many youth face when they live on the streets.

These are the young people who come to Choices.

Choices has a primary mandate to work with youth who have experienced, and continue to experience, substantial barriers and trauma in their lives, including:

• Breakdowns in family situations
• Homelessness
• Lack of safe / supportive environments
• Ongoing experiences with the justice system
• Impact of FASD, learning disabilities, mental health issues
• Anger issues and violent behaviour
• Sense of isolation from the community
• Lack of attachment to stabilizing influences in their lives
• Academic difficulties or alienation from the educational system
• Inability to find or maintain employment
• Lack of opportunity/role models in making healthy life choices