Summer issue 2017 Oct./Nov. Issue 2017 | Page 17

She never meant to end up here.

    He never wanted to be that person.

    They were never supposed to live there.

    Yet every year, more than two million youth in America will face a period of homelessness. 40% of the homeless in America are teens under the age of eighteen. According to the National Network for Youth, the average age a teen becomes homeless is only fourteen years old. They find themselves living on the streets without easy access to food, water, or somewhere to lay their head at night. No child grows up with that as their dream. But circumstances come into their lives and break them, and never leave them the same.

    The main cause of youth homelessness is physical, sexual, and/or emotional abuse from parents or guardians. The ones who were supposed to love them the most. The ones there to care for them and make sure they have a safe place to stay. Those very same ones are the ones who instead will crush them and drive them to life on the streets.

     57% of the homeless will spend at least one day every month without food. So many of us, as comfortable Americans, will complain if we go over three hours without food. We make jokes about being “hangry”, and how we’re “starving”, without really even thinking about our words. And the reality is that millions of homeless teens are living daily without food - hunger gnawing inside the pit of their stomachs, having no relief in sight.

    So they compromise. They will be forced to sacrifice their bodies and their hearts because of a desperate need for one of the most basic necessities of life that we take for granted…food. In the United States, as many as 20,000 homeless teens are forced into prostitution by human trafficking networks every year. They are forced to the streets to escape their nightmarish realities at home, yet what they find on the streets is the same cycle of abuse they are running from. Because many of these runaways are escaping lives of sexual or physical abuse, they are conditioned to think that this is just a way of life. And they find themselves running around on a hamster wheel that they can’t jump off of. These runaways are fighting to survive on the streets. They are young, vulnerable…and easy prey for traffickers. 72% of prostituted women are currently or formerly homeless. They have nowhere else to go. No one to turn to. They just want somewhere to lay their weary heads. Something to fill the ache in their stomachs. when they are approached by traffickers, it seems like the only way out. It seems like the only way for them to get the basic necessities of

So when they are approached by traffickers, it seems like the only way out. It seems like the only way for them to get the basic necessities of life that they need. And it is estimated that runaways will be approached by a pimp within the first 48 hours of living on the streets.

    This catastrophic cycle of disaster can seem overwhelming. How can we possibly begin to unravel the numbers and make a difference? Start with prayer. Ask God where He wants you to fit into helping with this dire need. Collect food for your local homeless shelter. As the months get colder, these homeless teens will need blankets and warm clothes. Get together with your friends and collect these items to donate. Volunteer your time. Offer a listening ear to these hurting individuals who need to know there’s still a heart out there that cares enough.

    Maybe instead of focusing on the two million across the country, we can start by focusing on the one standing on the street corner down the road. Or maybe we can start before it even gets that far. What if we start with the one two lockers down from us at school? The one in the cafeteria by themselves. The one who shies away from the crowd and is hesitant about walking into church alone. Maybe we could start with the one whose eyes are empty, but still forces a smile to her lips.

    We can’t always see what is going on inside a person’s life. The girl next door could be tomorrow’s runaway. But if we reach out to that one today, we could save that one from becoming a statistic on the street tomorrow. So let’s start with the one. The one God has placed in our path today. The one we can impact with simple kindness, and genuine love.  

    The one we have the opportunity to save today.