Provided
Siobhan Keenan's "Partly There," an example from the art show hosted by the Youth Outreach Office last week.
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On Thursday, June 18, The Learning Web held an art show at its Youth Outreach Office, featuring works from the displaced or homeless youth that the Office serves. The art show, the first of its kind, was related to an art project in which the youth in the outreach program participated as what Youth Outreach believes to be healthy form of self-expression.
The executive director of the Youth Outreach Office, Maryann Lapinski, believes that the students can produce interesting pieces of artwork, and wished to share it with the community in an art exhibition, stating, "There are just some extraordinary pieces, and there is a very wide variety of photographs, but also poetry, collage, pen and ink drawings, charcoal, and some of the works were selected and will be in the CSMA art show later this summer."
Youth Outreach, which was established in 1990 by the Learning Web, has a goal of helping homeless or displaced teens in Tompkins County, who often have conflicts with their parents, have employment or educational issues, or other severe problems. The organization intends for this art show to be a way of "educating the community that this group of very vulnerable young people exists in this community, and they have opinions and perspective worth sharing", according to Lapinski.
Last year, the Outreach Office conducted a survey of youths living independently, interviewing those involved in order to learn more about the individual population. Additionally, the Outreach office helps its displaced youth members, on a case by case basis, obtain housing, complete their education, gain employment and lifestyle skills, find apprenticeships and employment, and access necessary services, as some in Youth Outreach face problems such as substance abuse and mental illness.
One example of a displaced youth who was positively affected by Youth Outreach is "Pat," who, at the age of eighteen, had stayed with friends after being released from a residential substance abuse facility until he was referred to the Outreach Office. During his time at the Outreach office, Pat was able to find stable housing, re-establish contact with his family, begin an apprenticeship at a local retail business, eventually being hired, and eventually left the program to begin college. Despite Pat's progress, and the resulting increased confidence in himself, he still struggles with substance abuse, yet continues to work at living independently.
Youth Outreach admits that not all youth involved are as successful as Pat, but considers his story an example of how their work affects those involved.
Originally published Thursday, June 23, 2005
