March 2, 2008
Press Advisory
For additional information contact
The Rev. Chuck Currie
503-253-5457 or [email protected]
Religious Leaders Tell Portland Council To Protect Homeless Youth
Religious leaders from across the Portland area today issued a letter to the Portland City Council asking that the council protect programs for homeless youth that are currently being considered for elimination.
The city’s Bureau of Housing and Community Development is requesting that the City Council eliminate 100% of current City funding for both Transitional Housing and Short Term Shelter in the Homeless Youth System.
The letter was signed by representatives of 25 mainline Christian, Evangelical, Orthodox, Roman Catholic and ecumenical churches and / organizations.
“It has been said that every great economic crisis is in reality a great moral crisis. How we treat children is without question one of the most important moral issues of our time. We know from years of research that 80% of homeless youth involved with transitional housing leave the streets. Short Term Shelter is the place where homeless youth first access services and is the place – particularly during cold winter months – where their lives are literally saved,” stated the letter.
