Summit addresses impact of COVID-19 on vulnerable youth
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the demand for social services has seen an unparalleled surge — particularly among homeless youth who typically benefit from the support of on-site services at school.
“These historic times have greatly exacerbated the challenges for young people experiencing homelessness, and it makes the movement’s work harder – but even more important,” Arash Ghafoori, executive director of Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth (NPHY), said Friday during a summit to address the issue.
Clark County has the second-highest rate of unsheltered homeless youth — behind Santa Clara County in California, which includes San Jose — according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2019 Annual Homeless Assessment Report.
That number is only bound to increase as the economic effects of COVID-19 are yet to take shape.
That’s why this year’s Southern Nevada Youth Homeless Summit was even more important to do, even virtually, Ghafoori said. Themed “The Movement Fights Back,” the virtual summit kicked off Friday morning with the stories and experiences of four formerly homeless youth dealing with the effects of COVID-19.
“The pandemic just made things uncertain. I emailed my employer and he said, ‘Just wait and see,’” former homeless youth Theresa Butler said during the panel. “But for someone who is trying to get out of survival mode and who’s trying to make it happen for myself, I cannot just wait and see.”
Fourth annual summit
The fourth annual conference was presented by NPHY and Sands Cares, the community engagement and charitable giving program of Las Vegas Sands Corp., with support from the Las Vegas Review-Journal and the UNLV Greenspun College of Urban Affairs.
“The first three summits laid a firm foundation for how our community will address and ultimately solve the issue of youth homelessness by establishing and beginning to work on the Southern Nevada Plan to End Youth Homelessness, but a lot of the foundation we’ve laid over the past three years … can be shaken. In 2020, they have been shaken,” said Ron Reese, a spokesman for Las Vegas Sands.
“We must ensure that young people who have been stripped of their safety nets get the resources they need to stay safe and healthy and continue to move forward during this pandemic.”
In a brief video posted on NPHY’s Facebook page before the summit, Gov. Steve Sisolak said “youth homelessness is an issue in Nevada that cannot be ignored.”
“As governor, I’m so glad to see that you’ve come together to work alongside us to make sure that we’re doing all that we can to tackle youth homelessness head-on,” Sisolak said.
The two-hour panel on Friday included questions from the leaders of businesses, public agencies and nonprofits. Among them, Clark County Commissioners Lawrence Weekly and Justin Jones, representatives from the Southern Nevada Health District and the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada participated.
Another panel, set for Nov. 20, will focus on the role racism plays in perpetuating homelessness.
Youths share stories
On Friday, former homeless youth Theresa Butler shared how she had to drop out of her online geology class in the spring because she didn’t have access to Wi-Fi. Heather Pummill’s living situation felt unstable, but she was able to maintain straight A’s and work three jobs.
Tayvon Jenkins said he let go of his security officer job because of his underlying health conditions. He couldn’t go to the doctor’s office, take the bus or go to the grocery store, and he was running out of medicine.
Nicholas Barr, a UNLV professor in social work, emphasized the need for affordable housing, a living wage and trauma-informed services.
The discussions from both of the panels this year are to be synthesized into the plan to end youth homelessness.
Since its inception in 2017, the summit has debuted the plan and coalesced the movement to end youth homelessness into an organized, community-driven response.
For more information or to read the plan, visit NPHY.org/Summit20.
The Review-Journal is owned by the family of Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson.
Contact Briana Erickson at berickson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5244. Follow @ByBrianaE on Twitter.
