WMPR designated Charities’ Safe Place
By Fabvienen Taylor
JACKSON — Wanda Evers’ daughter was a runaway.
“Our House helped me to get her back,” said the WMPR station manager. “Now she’s doing just fine and is a productive citizen.” Evers spoke as people — Catholic Charities Our House Shelter staff, police, city officials, and other invited guests — gathered at the West Jackson radio station located at 1018 Pecan Park Circle.
“Wanda Evers called us and said she was interested in the radio station becoming a Safe Place site,” said Edwina Williams, alcohol and drug counselor at Our House.
“Today WMPR will become our 69th site,” she said. “We are very thankful WMPR allowed us to open a site here. It is a plus for the community and a plus for Catholic Charities in helping us to get our message out to runaway youth and their families,” Williams said.
The designation of the new site came at the end of the National Safe Place Week, on Friday, March 20.
Safe Place sites are an outreach service of Our House, an emergency runaway shelter for youths age 12-17.
“Catholic Charities is very honored WMPR is partnering with Our House to provide this wonderful location for Safe Place,” said Greg Patin, executive director of Catholic Charities.
Safe Place and Our House are here to help children out on the street who are in need of their services, he said.
The 69 Safe Place sites, of which 39 are mobile (JATRAN city buses), are located throughout the Jackson area and provide youth immediate help.
At the sites – designated by a yellow Safe Place sign — are adult volunteers trained in crisis intervention who offer assistance in transportation to Our House Shelter for youth who cannot return home.
In Jackson, Our House helps between 240-250 youth a year. Since it began operating in 1986, over 6,000 youth have been served.
Our House provides a safe environment focused on eventually returning youth to their own home.
The professional staff help youth and family work through their problems by providing them with round-the-clock crisis counseling, individual, family and group counseling.
The staff also provides 24-hour telephone and walk-in counseling and referral services to assist young people and families in resolving problems before youth run away.
Nationally, over 1,000 communities have Safe Place sites where over 100,000 youth have been helped, according to Williams.
“I have been to Our House many times,” said Mayor Frank Melton of Jackson. “We have to work on taking care of and helping our next generation. Catholic Charities’ Our House is a great place.”
Deputy Police Chief Tyrone Lewis has taken youth to Our House.
“On behalf of the police department I want to commend WMPR and Catholic Charities for teaming up. I can’t think of a better place in Jackson for a Safe Place site other than WMPR because someone is here all the time, 24 hours a day,” he said.
Williams said having Safe Place sites in a community gives runaway youth a safe place to get off the street.
“Today there are more children running away or being neglected or abused or in a crisis situation with a parent or both parents,” she said.
“They may be suspended from school, or living in a very stressful situation at home. We can help them and their families at Our House.
“These Safe Place sites give a child the opportunity to ask for help themselves,” she said.
Evers spoke as people — Catholic Charities Our House Shelter staff, police, city officials, and other invited guests — gathered at the West Jackson radio station located at 1018 Pecan Park Circle.
