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Youth OasisHelping Homeless KidsYouth Oasis PO Box 66437 260 S Acadian Thruway (225) 343-6300
"We are the only shelter in Baton Rouge that will accept unaccompanied children from the ages of 10 to 17 who are homeless or at risk for being homeless," explains Alvin Smith, executive director of Youth Oasis. "We want people to know we're here as a resource to provide relief to families in trouble. As a community we need a way to work with these children who have no other place to go."
Services provided by Youth Oasis include assistance in education completion, vocational testing and training, job training and procurement, support groups, and mentoring. The main objective is to provide homeless youth with financial and interpersonal self-sufficiency while providing a network of support groups and mentors. "There's a number of reasons kids become homeless," says Alvin, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. "Sometimes children and parents get so frustrated each with each other they don't know what to do. Sometimes parents will put children out; and sometimes kids will just run away."
In addition to serving the 7-parish Capitol Area Human Services District, Youth Oasis occasionally helps runaways who come from other states. Located at 260 South Acadian, Youth Oasis is able to support kids for up to 15 days, after which other agencies may be contacted to help out as necessary, says Alvin. "We are an emergency homeless shelter, not a group home." (The transitional living program, for youth aged 16-21, is housed in an apartment complex in another part of the city.) Referrals come from a variety of sources. "The police department being called out to domestic problems may bring a child here," Alvin says. "The Capitol Area Human Services District, the Office of Community Services and the Office of Youth Development may also refer youth they don't have a particular placement for. The homeless youth may also come from word of mouth. That's one of the reasons we want to spread the word that we're here." Current members for the Baton Rouge Alliance for Transitional Living and Youth Oasis include Casey Family Programs, Gulf Coast Teaching Family Services, Department of Social Services, Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Development Volunteers of America, Family Services of Baton Rouge, Louisiana Rehabilitative Services, and Capital Area Human Services District. Youth Oasis programs are funded by Federal grants from Family Youth Service Bureau, HUD and FEMA; by contracts with CAHSD, OCS and OYD; by local grants through the Pennington Foundation and Baton Rouge Area Foundation and Affiliates; and by private donations. We are actively seeking funds from the community," Alvin says. "What we try to do in the shelter is connect with the youth, help them to figure out their situations. Ideally of course we want the youth to be reunited with their families. We have a family counseling program to try to bring the family back together if possible." For more information or to make a donation, please contact Alvin Smith, LCSW Executive Director, P.O. Box 66437, Baton Rouge, LA 70806; or call (225) 343-6300.
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Youth Oasis is both a homeless shelter for children and a transitional living facility for young adults.
Formerly known-since 1996-as the Baton Rouge Alliance for Transitional Living (BRATL), the non-profit took the name Youth Oasis in 2003.
Alvin says there are some 850 homeless children currently enrolled in the public school system. (Most of these are living with friends, not on the street.) "The children who come here, even if homeless, have a right to a public school education by law and so we connect them with the homeless liaison in schools. We have them go to school during the day and help them work on their individual problems so they can be stronger when they move on."
