Right now Jacksonville and the surrounding areas (NE Florida) according to the Department of Education last year had 8,042 homeless students enrolled in school. When the numbers for this year are tallied up sadly if the rest of the country is any indication those numbers will be much higher. Nationally in the last 2 years the number of homeless youth in our country has increased by 100%. This is literally a national catastrophe.
In May of last year we launched Forsaken Generation Jacksonville (or Team Jacksonville). We are currently working to support the efforts of 10 organizations in Jacksonville working with children and youth who are homeless. They are as follows: Daniel Kids,The Sulzbacher Center, Trinity Rescue Mission, Youth Crisis Center,Family Promise, City Rescue Mission, Community Connections, House of Angels,Jasmyn and Seamark Ranch.
What we discovered when we toured these shelters was nothing short of heartbreaking. Every shelter is filled to maximum capacity every night. One of the shelters had as many as 80 to 100 children staying at the shelter every single night. What’s even worse, there’s a 1 month waiting list to get help. Basically what that means is that if a child or youth needs help they have to wait a month to get it. Each of the organizations that we visited are being stretched to their limits. They are doing as much as they can but they all need so much help.
If you visit our YouTube page, you can see the interview I did with Jimmy Kelly of Daniel Kids.
What can you do to help?
We encourage people to start by doing just one thing. There are numerous volunteer opportunities available. Here’s a list of just a few of them:
1. Adopt a Room – Each year thousands of women and children come seeking help after a hardship of some sort. When they arrive – either from other shelters or off the streets, they usually just have the clothes on their backs. While the shelters we work with can provide them with a room, with clothes, with the security they hunger for and with a chance for a new life, they cannot provide them with the basic items they need to make their new ‘home’ feel like a ‘home’. Our Adopt a Room program was designed to bring volunteers into the shelters to create a “home” environment for the women and children entering the program. Items such as sheets, pillows, blankets, towels and washcloths, personal toiletry items, a table lamp and an alarm clock make all the difference in the world to a family that enters a facility with nothing but the clothes on her back. To learn more about adopting a room, check out this video by clicking here.
2. Mentoring – Many homeless children do not have a positive adult role model in their lives. Many have been abandoned and abused. At its most basic level, mentoring helps because it guarantees a young person that there is someone who cares about them. A child is not alone in dealing with day-to-day worries. Think back. Did you know how to study for a test or make plans for college? Do you remember wanting your first car or looking for a part-time job? Simple things that seem easy or straightforward to you now may appear to be a complete mystery to a child that is homeless. You can change the life of a child by participating in our mentoring program.
We currently have multiple mentoring opportunities available depending on the age range of the child you would like to mentor. Length of commitment and hours are flexible.
3. Collections – The shelters are in desperate need of many items that simply can’t be purchased for the residents. With recent cuts in funding, the needs are greater than ever. You can collect some of these items, even organize a drive at your school, work or church. Here is a wish list of items needed, click here.
4. You can also help teach a class that helps teach: Resume writing, interviewing skills, job coaching, computer skills and more!
5. Or maybe you have your own creative idea on how you can help make a difference in the lives of these children!
If you’re interested in getting involved visit our Contact Us page. Submit your info and we’ll get you plugged in to the right opportunity for you!
