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LifeWorks is a comprehensive network of service centers located throughout the Austin-area community. More than 10,000 youth and families are served every year, making LifeWorks central Texas' largest provider of free and affordable counseling and interim housing. Clients can access wide-ranging services at any of the three multi-service centers in Austin or the service site in Round Rock; four additional area locations are dedicated exclusively to housing homeless and runaway youth. :
LifeWorks offers a full continuum of support to help homeless and runaway youth escape life on the street and achieve self-sufficiency. Services include basic survival assistance, crisis intervention, medical services, teen parenting and educational support, counseling services, GED services, case management, HIV testing and counseling, and much more. LifeWorks also operates the only walk-in 24-hour emergency shelter for youth in Travis County. There, runaway and unaccompanied youth have access to a secure place to sleep, food, clothing, and case management to coordinate family reunification, medical care, transportation, educational services, tutoring, and counseling.
LifeWorks also manages Transitional Living Services, a program that provides secure housing and case management services for up to 18 months to homeless youth transitioning into adulthood. This coed program accommodates 15 residents ranging in age from 16 to 23 who have access to independent living skills classes, aftercare services, financial support, and 24-hour on-site assistance from direct care staff. The facility is located in central Austin near two public transportation lines.
The agency’s Supportive Housing Program is an independent-living program. Residents stay in furnished, utilities-paid apartments and receive financial assistance and around-the-clock on-site staff management. LifeWorks provides case management, including advocacy and case coordination, independent living skills training, and financial management. Referrals to childcare, medical services, mental health services, education and job training are available, as are on-site tutoring and training in other independent living skills.
LifeWorks’ Street Outreach Program provides services to runaway, homeless, street-dependent and at-risk youth. Street Outreach provides understanding, compassion, and basic survival skills and is designed to address the complex needs of this challenging population. The program is a collaborative effort between LifeWorks, People’s Community Clinic, and University Area Churches. The program operates a field station and drop-in center Monday through Friday afternoons. Youth come in to escape the weather and/or contact staff and volunteers with whom they have established positive working relationships. The only street outreach program of its kind in Austin, the facility makes it possible for street youth to obtain services that were previously non-existent, all at one location: educational workshops, GED preparation, hygiene supplies, washer and dryer services, alternative activities, medical care, nourishment, clothing, drug and alcohol assessments, transportation services, immunizations, HIV counseling and testing, pregnancy testing, mental health counseling, drug and alcohol counseling, and case management services. A team of outreach workers is available to help unaccompanied and homeless youth access and navigate Austin’s social service network.
LifeWorks is understandably proud of their success in transitioning countless youth from crisis to safety. Steve Bewsey, Director of Housing and Homeless Services, shared the following anecdotes of homeless youngsters who, with the help of LifeWorks’ services, overcame dire circumstances to reclaim their dignity and their hope for happy and fruitful lives.
After her mother died, 15-year-old M stopped attending school and began a frightening two-year odyssey. Moving aimlessly from one place to the next, she became involved with drugs and alcohol and had numerous relationships with older men. Living on the streets of Austin, she came into contact with LifeWorks' Street Outreach program, eventually accepting emergency shelter. Given an environment in which she could assess her needs and personal goals, M chose to leave the streets, moved to a foster home, and enrolled in LifeWorks' GED program.
S and A were referred to Lifeworks' Emergency Shelter by a school counselor who discovered that the brother and sister-living on their own after their mother was incarcerated-were being evicted. They feared being taken by Child Protective Services and becoming separated. Shelter staff helped the youths contact their mother, who was scheduled for release from jail in 60 days. She wanted the family to reunite upon her release, but the father was in New Jersey. LifeWorks contacted the father and arranged for him to come to Austin and stay at the Salvation Army while parenting S and A at the LifeWorks Shelter. Once the mother was released from jail, however, the family still faced homelessness. A manager for LifeWorks' Passages Case Management program was able to arrange a place for them to stay, and, upon the mother's release, the family was reunited.
Seventeen-year-old J, who had been in and out of foster care since he was five, decided to leave the foster care system and make it on his own. He had not finished high school, had no job, and was diagnosed with severe depression but was not receiving treatment. Over a three-month period he would occasionally stay overnight at the emergency shelter when he was afraid to be on the streets. Finally he decided to take control of his life. He entered the shelter and enrolled in LifeWorks' GED program. After two months, he progressed to LifeWorks' Transitional Living Program where he completed his GED, found work, saved $800, and moved to his own apartment.
Such success stories are numerous, of course: LifeWorks is geared toward success in all its programs, services, and accommodations. Their mission, “to transition youth and families from crisis to safety and success,” sounds simple but requires the efforts of many people working in coordination. The organization’s success, like that of its clients, relies on the assistance of numerous behind-the-scenes contributors who, like LifeWorks’ staff members, are dedicated to helping our nation’s homeless youth discover their best potential. For more information on this life-saving effort and how you can help, visit their website at http://donate.lifeworksweb.org/.
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