The City of Greenville is set to get its first drop-in center for homeless and vulnerable young people. Pendleton Place, which has helped vulnerable children, families, and young adults in Greenville, is looking to open the center in a cottage on their campus this Spring.
The drop-in center is meant for at-risk young people between the ages of 17 and 26, male and female. The goal is to have a place for them to come in and get what they need, such as a shower, a hot meal, access to a computer, and guidance from those who can help them out.
“We are really excited about this,” said Pendleton Place Executive Director Jed Dews.
Pendleton Place serves hundreds of people a year. They started out as an emergency shelter for kids going into foster care, but their reach has expanded over the years. Now, one of their missions is helping those who have aged out of foster care, but still need support.
Dews says Pendleton Place’s count shows more than 60 homeless youth between the ages of 17 and 26 in the Upstate, and more than half of them had been in foster care as kids.
“So many of these young people have ben in the system, have lived in foster care, perhaps have experience in the juvenile justice system, and we know that the common theme for them is trauma,” Dews said. “All of them have been traumatized.”
Dews said the center will probably be open weekdays from breakfast to lunch, but it would also connect its youths with other services to help them find housing, healthcare, mental healthcare, and even things like free haircuts.
“So we’ve been really inspired by how well it’s worked in other communities to create great outcomes around getting youth back into permanent housing, into employment situations again, and really just moving up that ladder of economic mobility to stand on their own two feet again,” Dews said.
Pendleton Place has raised enough money to run the center, Dews said, but they still need between $10,000 and $13,000 to revamp the building and buy things such as furniture.
Pendleton Place is also planning on expanding its overnight shelter for youth by eight beds this Summer, and they’re looking to add more.
You can donate to Pendleton Place here.
