MY House celebrates first anniversary Sept. 26

I am retired. I was a 35-year Alaskan Public School Teacher. A colleague had retired five years earlier. At his retirement party, I asked him, “What was your most memorable experience in your tenure?” He quickly replied, “Opening a new school. It was very exciting.” I never had that experience. I had been part of many new educational programs in existing schools and mentored new teachers. But I never personally experienced the excitement that comes with opening a new site.

Well, never say never. I was fortunate to be part of a very exciting opportunity a year ago when MY House opened the Gathering Place with the Gathering Grounds Cafe and the drop-in center for homeless youth. As I drove in that first morning, I realized it was going to be something very different for our youth. We opened our doors that morning to the public at 7. I wanted to savor the experience. The staff was firing up the espresso machine for our first customers. But, hold the phone. I convinced Kurt and Kyra Hoenach to stand outside, in front of our new neon “Open” sign before the mad rush began to take a picture. Kurt is the Gathering Grounds Cafe manager and Kyra is now the manager of our newly opened Streamdriven Boutique.

This could have never happened without Michelle Overstreet. She was the founder of MY House and driving force as the first President of MY House. She wanted to do something different for homeless youth than just hand out sleeping bags and gas cards and hope they did not freeze in their cars. Now, she is the Executive Director and continues to work collaboratively with the board and the community to fulfill our mission. Our board members are all committed to the goal of providing housing for homeless youth with a full continuum of care, including emergency, transitional and affordable housing. As you may know, the nearest crisis youth shelter is Covenant House in Anchorage. And, I always remind the public that we have an animal shelter in the Valley, but not a youth shelter!

MY House has never looked back and continues to move forward providing a “hand up and not a handout.” Our community has been awesome. We had many volunteers that helped transform the old Husky Electric building into the Gathering Place. This would have never happened without everyone’s support. Thank you! In the drop-in center, we provide homeless youth with case management to help them meet their goals to become self-sufficient. Our primary focus is employment to assist them with securing a job to afford housing. That is a challenge due to the up-front costs, (first, last and a security deposit) monthly rent, and other expenses. It is truly out-of-reach and a stretch.

Why would a youth choose to be homeless? There are many reasons and they are complex and multifaceted. Yet, our data reveals a very disturbing fact. Almost 40 percent of our surveyed youth leave home due to their parents’ mental health and substance abuse issues. They actually feel safer on the streets. I have personally experienced those streets and homeless camps this summer. And, they are not safe.

Some have returned home due to school starting and the weather changing. The rain gets old, along with rain-soaked clothing. Others have moved into abandon RVs, trailers, or campers and some are still in tents. These last groups will be looking for something different when it gets really cold.

And, we are that different place. We employ homeless youth on site in the cafe, in our newly opened boutique and in a co-located car detailing business. You would have to visit our drop-in center to really understand and see first-hand our “relationship building” model.

We cordially invite you to celebrate our first year anniversary with us from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sept. 26. We will have a special awards recognition from noon to 1 p.m. We are excited to announce a “Work Force Development” grant of $50,000 from Wells Fargo. And, we continue to receive financial, clothing and food donations from our community. Again, we could not have done this without your support. Come and celebrate with us. All are welcome. For more information, call 373-4357. Join us as we continue the good fight.

Michael P. Carson is the Vice President of MY House.