To help homeless youth, volunteers are needed at the Snoqualmie Valley Winter Shelter. After a series of meetings this fall with the newly formed Homeless Teen Forum group the shelter has agreed to open its doors to homeless teens, at least for part of the night.

The winter shelter, a seasonal organization that is not licensed to serve children 18 or younger unless a parent is present, has agreed to serve unaccompanied minors from opening at 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Due to licensing restrictions, the shelter cannot provide overnight accommodations for these youth. All youth who come into the shelter will be given the opportunity to transfer to the Friends of Youth shelters for overnight services.

To proceed, the shelter will need to schedule additional volunteers to staff the shelter from 8 to 10 p.m., to provide supervision, companionship, and outreach to teens. On nights when no teens come to the shelter, these Youth Outreach Volunteers can engage “Transitional Age Youth” (18-24 years old) and connect them to Friends of Youth.

All potential youth outreach volunteers must be age 18 or older, submit an application, and undergo a criminal background check. They must also attend a training session, 7 to 9 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 19, at Snoqualmie United Methodist Church, 38701 S.E. River St., Snoqualmie. Training will be provided by staff from Friends of Youth and Snoqualmie Valley Winter Shelter. Topics covered in the trailing will include causes of teen homelessness, what to expect in shelter, outreach practices, Friends of Youth resources, and volunteer boundaries/guidelines, with lots of time for questions.

To sign up for the training, send email to Trissa at trissad@cfhomeless.org.