With the national rate of homelessness growing by about 12% annually, the number of unhoused youth is expected to triple within the next decade.

“I wanted to get away from my mom,” recounted Sam*, a youth homelessness advocate who fled their home when they were 18. “We were suffocating each other with our mental health issues.”

Of the roughly 4.2 million people aged 13–25 who experience homelessness in the U.S. each year, many are escaping situations such as abuse, family rejection, or trafficking. In fleeing one crisis, they are thrust directly into another: homelessness. “I left my mom’s house with just a shopping cart of my clothes and a bookbag that was heavier than me, and I went to a drop-in center [a place where youth can go for immediate support and resources], and everything was locked, all the beds were unavailable,” Sam said.

“I was breaking down because I was like, ‘What am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go?’” shared Sam.

A Safe Place When There Seems Nowhere Else to Turn

That’s when Covenant House New York stepped in.

Covenant House New York — an agency of Catholic Charities of New York — works to help each young person find safety and refuge from the dangers of living on the streets.

Founded in 1972 by Father Bruce Ritter, Covenant House New York has been a leader in providing residential services to vulnerable homeless, runaway, and exploited youth for over 50 years. As the largest provider of runaway and homeless youth services in New York City, the organization serves over 1,600 young adult ages 16-24 annually.

“Covenant House plays a major role in addressing youth homelessness,” said Dr. Shakeema North-Albert, Chief Executive Officer of Covenant House New York. “We provide young people with stability, safety, warmth, a roof to put over their heads. In addition, we also provide critical support services that we believe will help young people get what they need to survive and not return into homelessness.”

For Alex*, now 21, the decision to leave home came at age 19.

“I came at 2 o’clock in the morning,” Alex said. “I packed a bag, said goodbye to my parents and went straight to Covenant House.”

The staff, Alex recalled, didn’t just feel like staff — they felt like family.

“More like father and mother figures, and some brother and sister figures as well,” Alex said.

Building Futures Through Opportunity

Covenant House helped Alex take meaningful steps toward a future career.

“They brought me to The Door, which is a program for youths to go into certain work courses like the healthcare system, which I’m interested in,” Alex said.

“They helped me with my studying for becoming a pharmacy technician, in which I passed my class, and I became licensed. They gave me an internship at a private pharmacy, and I was working there for about seven months,” Alex shared.

Sam learned about Covenant House New York through their mother-in-law, who once worked security at one of the organization’s former buildings.

“It was scary at first, but I grew to love it,” Sam shared. “I found myself through those walls. I learned how to paint and project myself and speak in front of people. It’s very welcoming for anybody who’s scared, who’s lonely, who feels like they don’t have anyone.”

While staying at the shelter on 41st Street in Midtown for about eight months, Sam participated in programs that helped them rebuild confidence and learn practical skills.

“CovWorks is where you go to get your documents and do trainings,” Sam said. “I did a two-week class where they talked about financial issues and how to handle money, open up your own bank account, and mock interviews.”

Building Resilience Through Support and Creativity

Today, Sam is working toward writing a book about their life through poetry.

“I was always the poetic type of person, but more so like rapping-wise, making music,” Sam said. “It’s in my family. My mom, she was rapping.”

“When I came to Covenant House, I was doing poetry because they said to write something down if I had any type of feelings, so when I do poetry I feel like I’m healing myself in my own words, because every time I write a word or there’s a tear on that page, it means a lot,” Sam said.

Looking back, Sam offers words of encouragement to other young people facing the same fears they once did.

“Don’t be afraid to be who you are. Don’t be afraid to find yourself. Don’t be afraid to stumble. Don’t be afraid to overcome an obstacle,” they said. “Just keep going, because it’s going to get better. It will always get better.”

Together with Catholic Charities of New York, Covenant House reminds us that every young person deserves safety, dignity, and a real chance to thrive. By walking alongside youth in crisis, Covenant House shows what compassion in action looks like across our city.

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of the young people featured.

To learn more about Covenant House New York, please visit their website: https://ny.covenanthouse.org/