VIDEO: Fighting To End Child Homelessness In The Magnolia State

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI)- The number of homeless children in the state of Mississippi, is heartbreaking to think about and some believe it’s a growing concern.

Being homeless doesn’t always mean living outside or under a bridge, it’s also not having a stable home, and here in the Magnolia State, kids growing up in unstable homes is something that’s becoming all too familiar.

“Resources is a big part of it,” said Abigail Stricklin, outreach coordinator at Sally Kate Winters Family Services. “Not all families have the same resources as other ones. There’s kids that grow up in broken homes, homes where their parents might be in jail, parents on drugs, running the streets, it really could be a variety of issues.”

Stricklin said all too often she sees kids who are victims of homelessness.

“For the 2015-2016 school year there were over 9,000 kids that were considered homeless in Mississippi,” said Stricklin.

The outreach coordinator said it’s about more than statistics, many of these kids deal with long-term effects.

“It sets them up for problems later in life,” she expressed.

That’s why Stricklin said they’re  working hard to put an end to this cycle.

“We offer a 21-day service for youth that are runaways or homeless, and they can stay with us for up to 21 days,” said Stricklin. “We get them enrolled in school, provide mental health services, anything you can think of.”

Within the past month, the organization has reached thousands of kids, helping them with transitional living and getting back to their normal lives.

“It’s important for us because we want kids to know there are resources available for them,” Stricklin explained. “Part of our runaway and homeless youth program is Safe Place. That is a place you can go to get help, so if you are a youth in a situation where you might be in trouble, you might be homeless, you might’ve run away from home, any of those circumstances, you can go to a Safe Place. You can get the help that you need, so really for us it’s all about community education, prevention, and getting ahead of the problem before it becomes a problem.”

The month of November has been marked as National Runaway Prevention Month.

During the month, Sally Kate Winters has reached over three thousand kids in the Golden Triangle.