So far during my internship at a homeless youth organization,  I have learned about what it means to be a homeless or at risk youth, and what ones needs are. I have observed who the youth are, and what has brought some of them to or near homelessness. I have also gained knowledge about what these youth need from an organization, and what such an organization expects of its youth and staff.

Before beginning the internship, we as a class have studied homelessness in America, and have even discussed homeless youth in particular. We have learned that the epidemic of  homeless youth is growing, and that these youth are in need. Prior to this class, I had little knowledge of homeless youth, and was unaware of the growing issue. When I thought of homelessness, i pictured men and women living on the street, and not youth who are forced into couch surfing and shelters. However, as i began the internship, I was able to see the epidemic first hand, from my own perspective. I learned that many of the youth have become homeless because of poverty, abuse, addiction, and abandonment. Some of the youth have also experienced little to no family support, which is what leaves them to fend for themselves. As for some of the youth who have been through abusive and traumatic experiences, many of them have found themselves addicted to drugs or alcohol. What I appreciate about the youth organization is the fact that they allow youth to come as they are, addicted and in need of help, rather than turning them away. They believe in helping the youth first with their basic needs, and then offering help with their addictions. Not only does the organization offer rehabilitation, but counseling as well, which I believe is extremely beneficial.  Along with needs such as these, the organization also assists youth with food, clothing, housing, medical and dental care, and even obtaining a California ID. The organization even goes beyond that, with aiding youth with transportation such as a buss pass, and even offers tutoring for school. I truly believe that the organization is doing an outstanding job with helping the youth, and the youth seem to believe so as well. I believe the one thing that sets them apart from other organizations is there discourse. They provide resources for the youth, as many resources as they can, and the youth can take them whenever they decide to. The youth are not forced to fix themselves, but the resources are there when they decide to. The youth are allowed to go to the organization and play games with their friends, just as they should. They are saved from their circumstances when they are at the organization, and allowed to be kids. And whenever they are ready, they can take advantage of  the available resources. However, as with any great organization, there is always room for improvement. I believe the organization could improve on their organizational skills, because this would make them more efficient. I am interested to see what the remaining duration of my internship will bring, and what more i will learn about the organization and what it does for the youth.