Youth Services of Tulsa dedicates fifth apartment complex to combat homelessness

Youth Services of Tulsa cut the ribbon at an apartment complex, which will immediately add 30 units to available housing for young people transitioning out of homelessness.

YST Executive Director David Grewe said his agency works mainly with teenagers identified through drop-in shelters or outreach teams, offering them housing and support for up to 18 months. "These are young people who are truly homeless and vulnerable," he said.

The complex in Tulsa is the fifth one bought and renovated by Youth Services to help meet the need for housing among young people the agency is assisting. Even with the expansion, Grewe said he had a 200-person waiting list.

Youth Services is often assisting children who are aging out of supervision through the Office of Juvenile Affairs, and Interim Executive Director Timothy Tardibono said the state needs local providers to help support young people in a critical phase, many of whom have no functional family to help them.

"This plays a critical role for that young person, to have a place to go when they turn 18, or else they would usually literally be on the street where they might be a danger to themselves or others," he said.