When you’re in the right place, there are signs…
The yellow diamonds that appear around Omaha represent Safe Place—a national youth outreach and prevention program for youth under 18 (and up to 21 in some communities) in need of immediate help and safety. Young people can come into businesses that display a Safe Place sign in their window (think: QuikTrip and the YMCA), receive food and drink, and wait for a volunteer from a Safe Place agency partner to connect them with professional help or a place to stay until their situation is resolved.
As a Safe Place representative for the Omaha metro, YES (yesomaha.org) brings youth in crisis to their own safe place in the Housing Program. There, young people can find warm meals, hot showers, and supportive case managers to help them work through crises. Meanwhile, they tirelessly work to make Omaha a safer community by recruiting more Safe Place sites and ensuring existing locations have proper signage and training.
If you or anyone you know needs help now, call the 24-hour YES Safe Place crisis line: (402) 578.SAFE. Or if you are interested in registering your business as a designated Safe Place, visit: bit.ly/yessafeplace.