Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced Aug. 23 that grant money will go to a local organization to help homeless youth. Some of the money, which is taken from the State Victims Assistance Act, will go to Cincinnati-based Lighthouse Youth Services (LYS) to help victims of domestic violence, including gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth, between the ages of 18 and 24.
“These kids don’t have to live on the streets and wonder every day where they’ll be getting their next meal,” DeWine said in a statement.
LYS, which helps about 2,200 people in the Greater Cincinnati area each day, will get $137,500 year per year for two years. The money will primarily go to the Lighthouse on Highland facility, which is located in Clifton. Bob Mecum, CEO of LYS, says the facility helps youth between the ages of 16 and 24 that are typically victims of violence.
During the day, Lighthouse on Highland provides nursing, showering, washing, food, shelter, computer and case-management services. At night, the organization acts as a 28-bed shelter. On the average day, the facility helps 10 to 30 people with its street outreach services and 40 to 60 people with its on-site services. On the typical night, 27 out of 28 beds are filled.
On average, LGBT youth face greater homelessness rates. Even though LGBT youth make up only about 10 percent of the general youth population, LGBT youth make up about 20 percent of the homeless youth population, according to the National Coalition of Homelessness. LGBT youth are also twice as likely to experience sexual abuse by the age of 12, and they’re about 7.4 times more likely to experience acts of sexual violence than heterosexual youth.
