Youth Emergency Service
Emergency Teen Shelter & Runaway Youth Program
Youth Emergency Service (YES), founded in 1976, is the largest shelter in the Philadelphia area offering immediate housing to homeless and runaway youth. Beyond meeting the basic needs of our youth, YES offers many support services, including on-site medical treatment, counseling, educational enrichment and recreational opportunities. Annually, YES provides a safe and supportive environment to more than 400 adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17. The shelter’s services include:
- Around-the-clock emergency shelter and protection for youth ages 12-17
- Telephone hotline and referral services
- Medical exams and follow-up
- Mental health services
- Voluntary and confidential HIV/AIDS testing
- Counseling for teens and family members
- Intensive program for youth and families to preserve the family unit
- Supervised educational and recreational programs
- Outreach to parents, children and community agencies
Youth Emergency Service
1526 Fairmount Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19130
215-787-0633
Safe Place
Safe Place is a national youth outreach program that educates thousands of young people every year about the dangers of running away or trying to resolve difficult, threatening situations on their own. This easily replicated community initiative involves the whole community to provide safe havens and resources for youth in crisis. Safe Place also creates a network of “Safe Place locations” – youth-friendly businesses, schools, fire stations, libraries, YMCAs and other appropriate public buildings that display the distinctive yellow and black Safe Place sign. These Safe Place sites extend the doors of emergency youth shelters like the Youth Emergency Service shelter operated by YSI. Safe Place gives youth immediate access to help wherever they are. Over 52 Safe Place sites have been established in Philadelphia since YSI joined National Safe Place.
If you have questions about the program or would like to learn more about becoming a Safe Place site, please contact Matthew Kofi Smith at 215-787-0633 or mksmith@ysiphila.org.
