YMCA Safe Place Services

We are branch of the YMCA of Greater Louisville. We’re committed to making our community stronger by providing help, hope and healing to teens and families in crisis. Our mission is to accept, affirm and advocate for youth by empowering them to reach their full potential in spirit, mind and body.

Shelter House

Safe Place Services began in 1974 with the founding of Shelter House. To address the growing number of runaway and ‘throwaway’ teens, the National Council of Jewish Women, the Junior League of Louisville and the YMCA of Greater Louisville founded Shelter House, which became one of the first dedicated youth shelters in the United States.

Shelter House has since provided tens of thousands of young people with a safe, secure, supportive environment that nurtures their potential and helps them chart a course to a bright, successful future.

After four decades, Shelter House remains the only shelter of its kind in the area. In fact, Shelter House is the only youth shelter in Louisville that offers young people and their families the ability to self refer and receive help at no expense to them.

Street Outreach

Homelessness is a real problem in our community. It is estimated that thousands of youth and young adults in our community are unstably housed and don’t have a bed or home of their own. What’s worse, many suffer from mental illness, alcohol or drug addiction and/or engage in high-risk sexual behaviors.

The YMCA Safe Place Services’ Street Outreach Program was created to educate homeless teens and young adults about the help available to them and give them immediate support in meeting their basic needs of food, water, shelter and hygiene supplies.

Our Street Outreach Program provides assistance for teens and young adults who may have fallen into drug use, prostitution, gangs or domestic violence — or those who have aged out of foster care or have been kicked out of their homes.

Street Outreach teams survey and visit parts of Louisville at varying times of day and night depending on the observations and reports of other street youth and past experience.

Y-NOW Mentoring

The stigma of having a parent incarcerated can cause children to feel shame, blame, fear and even lead to bullying and ridicule at school.

Children whose parents are in prison often struggle academically and find it difficult to trust adults. In fact, children with an incarcerated parent or parents are at an increased risk for anxiety, depression, aggression, truancy, substance abuse and attention disorders.

Sadly, studies show that these children are also seven times more likely to become incarcerated themselves.

Our goal is to break that cycle.

WE’RE HERE TO LISTEN.
WE’RE HERE TO HELP.

When youth, teens and young adults in crisis need somewhere to stay, someone to trust or someone to listen, YMCA Safe Place Services of Louisville is here to help — every day, around the clock.

With a focus on positive youth development, our cause is to strengthen families by breaking cycles of violence, abuse and turmoil and giving children and families the resources they need for a better future.

From youth mentoring and family mediation services to street outreach initiatives and trauma-informed care, YMCA Safe Place Services has redefined how our community addresses the needs of youth who are at risk of running away, becoming homeless or engaging with the justice system.

If you or someone you know needs help, please contact us today.