Member News

By LESLIE MODICA (lmodica@fosters.com)

Ashley Brimberry is 19, but has never taken a driving test.

When she turned 16 three years ago, she was bouncing between homes, and she said her parents weren't around to make sure she went to school, let alone teach her to drive.

She never went shopping with her mother for a prom dress, and she never had a Sweet Sixteen party. In fact, after years of no-shows at birthday parties, she had given up.

Now, her friends are just forging out on their own. But the Dover teen's already been there for years.

By Laura Rillos KVAL News

EUGENE, Ore. -- Her hands shoved into her pockets, a young woman shares a little-discussed detail about life on the streets: Homeless teens are becoming prostitutes, both willingly and unwillingly.

"I do know some friends who do do it. They think it's the only way they can survive, you know, take care of themselves," she said, adding the girls tell her a night in a hotel is better than a night in a tent.

She did not want to be identified but said she's propositioned often.

Melinda Giovengo can trace everything back to Sept. 15, 2008: That's the day Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, sparking a worldwide financial meltdown.

Since the collapse of the financial markets, Giovengo — the executive director of YouthCare, a Seattle nonprofit that provides emergency services, transitional housing, educational opportunities and employment training to homeless youth — has seen a 63 percent spike in the number of street kids looking for help.