Two YMCA members walk from Long Beach to US-Mexico Border to highlight youth homelessness
The 125-mile "solidarity journey" kicked off Monday at the YMCA Fairfield family branch in Long Beach.
LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Two YMCA members went on a five-day walk from Long Beach to the U.S.-Mexico border.
This is an annual campaign to help runaway and homeless youth.
"I experienced homelessness in my youth and thankfully I was able to escape with the help of YMCA, and so I'm here to serve as an example of what's possible when you invest in a young person who may be experiencing tough things, and what's possible when we listen and when we elevate the voice of our young people," said David Baker, a member of YMCA San Diego County.
The 125-mile "solidarity journey" kicked off last Monday at the YMCA Fairfield family branch.
It's a part of their "Rooted in Community" campaign, which creates a space for communities to envision what is possiblewhen we invest in young people experiencing homelessness.
"When we talk to average individuals in the community, they look at homelessness as a general issue, but what we're here to say is when you invest in youngsters experiencing homelessness, by doing just that, you deeply impact the numbers that are seen on the streets. We know that our youngsters, if not properly cared for, will find themselves on the streets later on," said Justin Lipford, a member of YMCA San Diego County.
Baker and Lipford will be stopping along the way on their journey for community events to talk about how we can all combat youth homelessness at a regional and statewide level.
Their journey ended Friday and there inviting people to come out to meet and support at their rally points along the way.
You can go to this website to find out where.
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