| Project Safe Place | | Print | |
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Safe Place is a national youth outreach program that educates thousands of young people every year about the dangers of running away or trying to resolve difficult, threatening situations on their own. Safe Place has helped more than 250,000 youth since its inception in 1983, and serves nearly 1,500 communities across the country. It is managed by 140 youth-serving agencies in 39 states and the District of Columbia. This easily replicated community initiative involves the whole community to provide safe havens and resources for youth in crisis. National Safe Place consists of a network of more than 17,000 partnering businesses and community buildings – such as fast-food restaurants, convenience stores, fire stations, public buses and libraries – that display Safe Place signs in their windows. The Children’s Village has partnered with 26 QuickTrip Gas Stations in the metro-Atlanta area and the Union City Fire Department as designated Safe Place locations. As endangered youth enter the designated Safe Place locations and ask for help, trained staff members connect the endangered youth to The Children’s Village for proper assistance. Youth are easily able to access immediate help wherever they are by “texting for help” or by simply walking into a Safe Place Location. Teenagers can text the word “safe” and their current location (street address, city, state) to 69866 for immediate assistance. They can also call The Children’s Village directly at 770-964-3301. Project Safe Place primarily reaches out to youth between the ages of 12 to 17, but we continue to be a resource for youth and families in crisis regardless of age, race, gender, disability, or socioeconomic status. For more information about The Children’s Village and Project Safe Place (i.e. volunteer opportunities, how to become a Safe Place site, interested sponsors, etc.) contact the office at 770-964-3309. The National Safe Place office can be reached at 1-888-290-7233 or at www.nationalsafeplace.org. . |
According to National Safe Place’s 2009 Annual Report, up to 2.8 million teens run away from home each year, and more than 50 percent have reported that their parents told them to leave or knew they were leaving but did not care.