No Child Deserves to Be Forgotten: Protecting the Wellbeing of Homeless Youth

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Protecting the Wellbeing of Homeless Youth

By Lydia Boulter

Homelessness doesn't just affect adults; it profoundly impacts young children too. In the US, 1 in every 30 children are homeless (Bassuk et al., 1). In Oregon, more than half of the children facing homelessness are under the age of six (“Who are the Youth,” 1). Many of these youth grow up in poverty, relying on food stamps and cycling through shelters. These early experiences often shape their future, putting them at a significantly higher risk of becoming homeless as adults. Some of these children are born into homelessness and remain unhoused well into adulthood.

Often, due to neglect or the inability of their parents to properly provide care, these children are given to the Foster Care system. However, the Foster Care system, the way it is, does not adequately solve homelessness in youth. Shockingly, 51% of homeless adults were once children in foster care (“Housing & Homelessness,” 1), and up to 31% of foster youth become homeless immediately after aging out of the system at the age of 18 (“Who are the Youth,” 1). These numbers reveal a deeper truth: if homelessness is like a big tree, one of its largest roots is generational poverty. Families trapped in cycles of poverty pass down barriers such as a lack of stable housing, education, and mental health services that leave children with few opportunities to escape.

Consider the story of Jahnee S., who was only 8 years old when her family became homeless. She remembers the cold winter, snow falling outside, and the church that took them in. But even there, safety was limited. After just two days in an emergency shelter, Jahnee contracted lice. By age 16, she found herself and her family homeless again. This time, however, her parents believed she was old enough to survive on her own and said they could no longer afford to take care of her.

At that point, school became a luxury Jahnee couldn’t afford. She needed to find work just to survive. Like many homeless youth, especially young women, she faced increased risks of violence, crime, assault, drug abuse, and trauma. She dropped out of high school, overwhelmed by isolation and despair. “If everyone I ever loved left me alone,” she recalled thinking, “why should I care about my future?”

But Jahnee’s story didn’t end there. A few high school friends reached out and offered her a place to stay. With their support, and help from a school system that had access to social services, she reenrolled and eventually graduated. That support became a turning point in her life and helped her reclaim agency and confidence in herself.

Jahnee’s journey is one of resilience, but also chance (“The Pursuit of Education,” 1). She was fortunate that friends stepped in and that her school had the funding to help. Not every youth is so lucky.

Protecting children’s well-being is not just an individual responsibility; it requires a community-wide effort. We must expand social services in schools, in the foster care system, invest in trauma-informed care, and promote youth outreach programs in places where homeless families are most likely to see them, such as shelters, churches, and community centers. Why care? These are our children, and by proxy, our future. By caring for the children of today, we are taking steps towards a brighter future. By meeting children where they are and providing real support, we can break the cycle of poverty and homelessness.

Ending youth homelessness begins with us, together.

Below are youth outreach programs in Oregon that you can join to support your local community:

https://newavenues.org/
https://janusyouth.org/programs/
https://www.homeplateyouth.org/

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Works Cited

Bassuk, Ellen, et al. “America’s Youngest Outcasts: A Report Card on Child Homelessness.” American Institutes for Research, 30 Nov. 2014, www.air.org/resource/report/americas-youngest-outcasts-report-card-child-homelessness.

Cyndi. “Homelessness - NFYI.” NFYI - National Foster Youth Institute, 27 May 2021, nfyi.org/issues/homelessness-2/.

“Home.” New Avenues for Youth, newavenues.org/. Accessed 2025.

“HomePlate Youth Services.” HomePlate Youth Services, www.homeplateyouth.org/. Accessed 2025.

in. “Group of School Children with Teacher on Field Trip in Nature. Stock Photo | Adobe Stock.” Adobe Stock, 2025, stock.adobe.com/images/group-of-school-children-with-teacher-on-field-trip-in-nature/306962564?clickref=1110lg8BEsc&mv=affiliate&mv2=pz&as_camptype=&as_channel=affiliate&as_source=partnerize&as_campaign=vkra. Accessed 18 July 2025.

“Programs – Janus Youth Programs.” Janusyouth.org, janusyouth.org/programs/. Accessed 2025.

S., Jahnee. “The Pursuit of Education: A Story of Homelessness, Perseverance, and the Impact of Caring Educators.” SchoolHouse Connection, 26 Apr. 2021, schoolhouseconnection.org/article/the-pursuit-of-education-a-story-of-homelessness-perseverance-and-the-impact-of-caring-educators.

“Who Are the Youth Experiencing Homelessness?” Oregon.gov, Oregon Alliance, www.oregon.gov/oha/HSD/BH-Child-Family/SOCAC/HB%202456,%202454%20Who%20are%20homeless%20youth%201%20pager.pdf. Accessed 17 July 2025.