Media Advisory

For immediate release: October 13, 2023
Contact: Sandra Wellhausen
(619) 507-2077
swellhausen@sdyouthservices.org

San Diego Youth Services Spends one Night Outside to Raise Awareness and Funds to End Youth Homelessness

More than 2,000 youth experience homelessness every night in San Diego

San Diego, Calif (Oct.10, 2023)— San Diego Youth Services’ board of directors, CEO and supporters are taking a stand against youth homelessness by sleeping out on Friday Oct. 20 at the organization’s third annual Street Sleep SD event, to raise awareness and funds for youth experiencing homelessness.

The event will take place at San Diego Youth Services’ Spring Valley Campus at 3845 Spring Drive, Spring Valley, CA 91977.  Doors open at 6 p.m. and the program begins at 7 p.m. and includes presentations about homelessness by staff and youth, sharing their experience. San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott will also give remarks. The event will be emceed by Tati from Jesse and Tati in the Morning on Star 94. 1 and San Diego Youth Services’ youth run coffee shop Ground Up Coffee will be open. The event concludes the following morning at sunrise.

“We are working hard to end youth homelessness in San Diego, by providing wraparound services, including housing, job training mental health services,” said Walter Philips, CEO, San Diego Youth Services. “Through Street Sleep SD, we are hoping to raise awareness for the more than 2,000 youth experiencing homelessness every night in San Diego.”

According to the Regional Task Force on Homelessness’ 2023 Point in Time Count, which is a one-day snapshot of the minimum number of San Diegans that experience homelessness, 10,264 people in the San Diego region experience homelessness on any given day and 2,011 are youth.

“We are not trying to pretend to know what it is like to experience homelessness by doing this event, but are instead hoping to shine a light on the seriousness of this issue and the need for our community to take comprehensive action to end homelessness,” said Philips.

SDYS works to end the cycle of homelessness by moving youth into safe and stable housing and providing safe places to live and long-term solutions for children and young adults who otherwise would have nowhere to go. The organization also provides comprehensive services, including the tools and training youth need to become self-sufficient and create healthy and productive paths in life.

To learn more and support Street Sleep SD, visit streetsleepsd.org.

San Diego Youth Services is a nonprofit organization serving more than 17,000 youth annually who experience homelessness, are vulnerable or abused. SDYS has helped stabilize the lives of more than 797,000 youth living in San Diego County since its founding in 1970. SDYS is working to end homelessness, prevent delinquency and school failure, break the cycle of child abuse and neglect and promote mental health and addiction recovery.

To learn more, visit sdyouthservices.org

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