nutritious meals per year
Youth Nightly
Days a week
Day Sylvester |
dinnerlead@teenfeed.org | 206.229.0813
Every night in Seattle’s University District, our Meal Program offers youth nutritious food, respite, and support. Over a warm meal, trained advocates and support coordination staff link youth with the resources and services they need to achieve stability.
We believe that food is at the heart of relationships. During meals, guests have access to a caring “family” of staff and volunteers who provide a consistent sounding board, resource hub, and opportunity for socialization. Our “family” provides youth with referrals to shelter, warm clothing, bus tickets, and basic needs items. From not requiring IDs to covering the cost of transportation, our Meal Program has been designed with accessibility in mind. We have created a community space with the lowest barriers to entry of any youth crisis program in Seattle.
Unconditional and compassionate listening leads to trust. This human contact in an otherwise tumultuous and disconnected life is of utmost importance to the youth we serve. Research has shown that when street youth are given a consistent opportunity to build rapport and trust with responsible adults, they begin to identify goals and develop a strategy to exit street life.
Meals are served every night of the week:
Positive Contacts Annually
Katrina Stephens |
stopcooordinator@teenfeed.org | 206.356.9314
Street Talk Outreach Program (STOP) is an immediate crisis intervention and trust-building backpack team that proactively reaches out to isolated high-risk youth who are distrustful of and resistant to traditional social service agencies. STOP also runs In-Reach, a weekly safe space providing community, basic needs, legal support, and mental health resources.
We end isolation, a vital first step. STOP Teams consist of staff members as well as trained former or current street youth, who serve as peer outreach workers. Our teams meet youth in their own environment, the green spaces and streets where they spend most of their time. STOP teams offer warm cocoa and cider, sack lunches, new socks, and essential first aid. Annually, STOP makes over 7,500 positive contacts with unstably-housed youth.
STOP also provides support coordination services (case management) for our guests between the ages of 18 and 25. By providing youth with necessities such as state identification, housing placement referrals, a mailing address, and employment referrals our case managers help remove barriers to building a stable life.
In support of this work, our STOP Peer Youth Internship Program provides youth transitioning out of homelessness with employment experience. Youth Interns work for 10 hours per week as peer outreach workers, a role in which they support and connect with their peers as part of our STOP teams. This program promotes job readiness skills, enables interns to save funds for rent, and provides valuable employment experience and references. Interns receive intensive case management throughout their employment.
Homeless youth are often victims of trauma. Our young people report that “conflict at home with parents and caregivers” is the primary cause of their instability. This conflict may stem from physical or sexual abuse, a parent or guardian’s drug or alcohol use, or being rejected from the family home due to sexual orientation. When our youth hit the streets, they are extremely vulnerable and usually unprepared to deal with municipal systems and basic needs such as finding food and shelter. Consequently, a Teen Feed meal or STOP outreach meeting is often the very first contact homeless youth have with support providers who can make referrals to appropriate services.
The youth we serve are often distrustful of adults and social service agencies. Our philosophy is to build trust and encourage participation by starting with a simple invitation to a warm meal in a safe place. Traditional service organizations often demand identification and demographic information for entry, which can discourage youth from seeking their services. In contrast, we require minimal information for entry, setting us apart and making our services accessible.
Helping dissolve barriers as youth meet their future off the streets
40+ local and 300+ state-wide partners
Flexible availability as unexpected needs develop
Bee Keyser | slycoordinator@teenfeed.org | 206.802.5735
Email us to make an appointment
SLY is a youth-centered case management program that focuses on building relationships to help young adults identify and achieve their goals as they transition to greater stability.
Teen Feed recognizes that many unstably housed youth are not comfortable accessing traditional, government-funded services. SLY coordinators provide youth with vital assistance so that they do not have to navigate these complex systems alone.
Our coordinators conduct daily check-ins with youth to track progress toward their self-identified goals. SLY coordinators provide crisis intervention services, resource referrals, job training, educational access, and networking with vetted nonprofits, agencies, and businesses. Additionally, SLY helps youth actively participate in their wellness, make positive choices, and optimize their health. This may involve enrolling youth in healthcare services, facilitating family reunification, securing housing, and more.