State Cuts Impacting Local Homeless

Cocoon House is devastated to announce that we have lost nearly $230,000 of the funding that made the Street Outreach Program for homeless and at-risk youth possible. Washington State Department of Health and Human Services will stop funding on January 31st 2015 due to cut backs in their budget, while maintaining funding in King County. Additionally, Cocoon House lost the $200,000 of backbone or basic funding provided by federal runaway and homeless youth legislation, despite the high outcomes produced by the program and high needs of our community. With 2/3rds of the supporting money gone from a key program in Snohomish County serving at risk and homeless youth we turn to you.

Much of the community may not be aware of Cocoon House’s street outreach program. The street outreach program has run for 16 years here in Snohomish County reaching youth living on the streets or in campgrounds as well as those teens struggling in school. The Cocoon House Team goes into all corners of the County to find youth, help meet their basic needs, connect them with services and hopefully help them leave what may be a very dangerous situation and enter Cocoon House’s emergency housing. School counselors connect middle and high school youth who are struggling with problems at home with Cocoon House Advocates to ensure that they have what they need to continue to be successful in school: whether that is new housing or just a supportive ear. Cocoon House also provides 24/7 response to youth in need of a safe place, often providing transportation to Cocoon House, other services or home.
“Though Cocoon House is committed to maintaining our Street Outreach Program, this will be next to impossible without support from the community,” states CEO Cassie Franklin. “This program ensures that teens are not living on the street, and is the only program of its kind here in the county that connects them to emergency shelter and supportive services to ensure they stay off the street.”

Each year, Cocoon House’s Street Outreach Program makes contact with nearly 6,200 teens through street outreach, our stationary Outreach Center on Broadway, and schools. More than 300 teens and young adults visit our Outreach Center every year to get food, help with addiction, assistance with job searches or just shower and do laundry. Especially in Everett, this service is necessary to curb the growing adult homeless population with more than 18.5% of chronically homeless people being youth ages 18-24. These services are so important towards ensuring the economic growth of our community, and the stability of our families here in Snohomish County.

For more information on how to help keep this program operating for years to come or to make a donation please go to www.cocoonhouse.org or contact Cocoon House at 425.259.5802 x105 or email jen.chwalibog@cocoonhouse.org