Gay Homeless Kids-Houston (HGK-H) was recently honored with its selection as a 2015-2016 beneficiary of the Diana Foundation. The gift of will be immediately put to use to finance HGK-H’s drop-in center, a new storefront location that will provide basic needs and services to LGBT youth who are living on the street.
Plans are to open the drop-in center in early 2016 and, through this permanent location with seven-day service, distribute backpacks with basic toiletries and needs, such as toothpaste, tooth brushes, deodorant and disinfecting wipes. “Our goal is to make our center the first responder for the needs of homeless, gay kids. By providing a safe place and welcoming location that is permanent and open all week, we can provides the kids with a reliable place they can count on for services and needs as well as referrals to service providers,” said HGK-H Board Member Al Amado. Because the center will focus on kids younger than 18, it will be unique in serving a segment of the population that is underserved if not completely unattended. “When we surveyed the current services for the homeless in Houston, we discovered, first, that most service providers are open sporadically –the norm is once a week or every so often to distribute items –and, second, that they really don’t focus on the under-18 age group because of concerns about dealing with minors.” HGK-H is remarkable in this sense, because it’s focus is on this underserved demographic.
The group was particularly excited to receive the gift from the Diana Foundation because HGK-H is a new organization. “Since we are a brand new start-up, we anticipated difficulty in raising funds and our business model is funding through private donations, so to receive this recognition from the oldest, gay organization in the United States, and one that is so highly respected, is huge. It gives us immediate credibility and quickly puts us on the radar of other potential donors,” said Amado. Once the drop-in center opens its doors, HGK-H has plans to expand its services to eventually include a place where the kids can find temporary, overnight shelter.
Please consider helping fund the center by making your online donation to Homeless Gay Kids-Houston, below.