Help for teens who are unhoused

Host Homes is a program that serves La Crosse County youth who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

According to Louise Campbell, Family & Children’s Center Community Services Coordinator, during the 2021-2022 school year, La Crosse reported 162 unhoused students, many of whom are living without an adult guardian. These numbers have risen in recent years, making this issue an urgent one.

Youth who are without a stable and safe living situation tend to struggle with school attendance, maintaining employment, and criminal activity and victimization. Unfortunately, the longer youth remain unhoused or displaced, the greater the likelihood that these struggles will increase in intensity as they move into adulthood.

“Housing services are limited in La Crosse,” says Campbell, “and near-nonexistent for minors. It was this realization that led FCC to develop the Host Homes program.”

Since its inception, Host Homes has supported dozens of youth with a variety of needs, and many of those youth have left their Hosts having found a permanent connection, a family. In the words of one youth preparing to leave for college: “I want to stay close to them. I know they’re always here [for me].”

Host Homes recruits, screens, and trains adult volunteers who support these youth in a range of ways, all tailored to each unique set of needs and interests. Volunteers have the option to provide:

  • Mentorship and guidance
  • Short-term and intermittent housing
  • Long-term housing

Youth are matched with volunteers and all parties are given the opportunity to build rapport, discuss expectations, and plan for future success with the support of a program social worker, who provides ongoing case management and advocacy for these youth as they work towards their goals in a family setting. Goals of the program focus on:

  • Safety
  • Stability
  • Diversion from the justice system and adult homelessness
  • Mental Health
  • Physical well-being
  • Increasing community connections to other resources and necessary services
  • Academic achievement and attendance
  • Preparation for independent living, including career planning and support

For information on how to serve as a Host Home volunteer partner, please email Destiny Ziel at dziel@fccnetwork.org.

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