Lake County will join more than 1,100 communities nationwide as the Crisis Center, in Gary's Miller neighborhood, celebrates its commitment to keeping youth safe during National Safe Place Week, which continues through Saturday.
Safe Place provides access to immediate help and safety for all young people in crisis. More than 105,000 youths nationally have received help through a business or community location displaying the yellow and black Safe Place sign since the program's inception 25 years ago in Louisville, Ky. Now, 144 youth-serving agencies in 41 states manage Safe Place programs in their local communities.
The Crisis Center has operated the Safe Place program in the Lake County since 1987 and has an office at 101 N. Montgomery St.
Currently, 190 businesses and community locations in the region - including all city buses of Gary, all fire stations in Gary, East Chicago and Hammond, and most libraries in Lake County - serve as Safe Place sites where a young person can be connected to Youth in Need's services. Locally, nearly 2,000 youths have walked into a Safe Place to receive support since 1987.
"All of our partners in Lake County make this program possible by caring enough to open their doors to youth in trouble and getting them connected with our services." Nikki Wielgos, Safe Place program coordinator, said in a written release. "Each Safe Place sign depicts another gateway to help for our kids in trouble."
As part of National Safe Place Week, the Crisis Center is offering free presentations for any interested Lake County business or organization wanting to learn more and/or wanting to become an official, designated Safe Place site. Presentations can be customized and offer an interactive view on how the program works and how it benefits communities.
For more information, visit www.nationalsafeplace.org or the Lake County Safe Place site, www.crisiscenterysb.org/safeplace or call (219) 938-7070.
As part of National Safe Place's Building A Safety Net For Youth awareness campaign, new youth-friendly Web sites, where they can learn more about the program, have been established such as www.safeplaceforteens.com and www.safetynetforyouth.org.
"Safe Place empowers kids to seek help themselves," Sandy Bowen, executive director of National Safe Place, said in the release. "These young people, many of whom would have nowhere else to turn, are tremendously brave and we honor their courage. We also honor the caring adults nationwide who have worked tirelessly for a quarter century to make their communities safer."
The U.S. Senate has designated the third week of March as National Safe Place Week each year since 2001.
- For The Times
