Runaway Prevention is Key

November is National Runaway Prevention Month (NRPM). As a parent, it’s important for you to be aware of the runaway and homeless youth crisis and the issues that these young people face, as well as to learn about solutions and the role you can play in preventing and ending youth homelessness.

If all the influential people in your child’s life work together, you and they can help prevent the situations that could compel your child to run away from home. A first step is assisting your child in discovering the delicate balance of life-saving skills:

• Awareness—what it means to run away and why running away will not solve his problems;
• Resources—how to build a safety net of trusted people and organizations to turn to for help;
• Communication—how to speak and listen effectively; and,
• Stress Management—how to reduce or manage stressors and solve problems.

You can also help your child’s friends, classmates and other youth who may have run away or are contemplating it. If you recognize they are going through a tough time, share with them that help is available through organizations like the National Runaway Safeline (NRS), the go-to resource for runaway, homeless, throwaway and at-risk youth and their families.  Its free and confidential 1-800-RUNAWAY hotline and 1800RUNAWAY.org online services, provide support and access to resources 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Youth can also text the short code: 66008, to receive an automatic response featuring links to the hotline or live chat.

Professional opinion of NRS Executive Director (Maureen Blaha)

Who is "Maureen Blaha"?

Maureen Blaha is the executive director of the National Runaway Safeline (NRS), the federally-designated national communication system for runaway and homeless youth.  Under her leadership the visibility of NRS and awareness of its 1-800-RUNAWAY hotline has grown, while support has steadily increased in both personnel and finances. Several key accomplishments have been realized during Blaha’s tenure including: a program focused on runaway prevention called Let’s Talk: Runaway Prevention Curriculum; a comprehensive trend data report of crisis calls to 1-800-RUNAWAY used to educate and raise awareness about the runaway crisis in America; “Runaway Youth Longitudinal Study 2011” research that identifies the long-term effects of running away as a youth, which can be used to better educate and encourage parents, teachers and other adults to get involved, address the issues, and ultimately prevent a runaway situation; and National Runaway Prevention Month, an annual campaign to increase awareness of the issues facing runaway youth and to educate youth, families and the public about resources available to prevent youth from running away.  Additionally, Blaha has been a featured speaker of the Special Victims Assistance Unit for the FBI (2005 and 2010), was invited to speak to UK parliament to help launch The Children's Society of England's national Safe and Sound Campaign (2005) and represented the runaway population at the groundbreaking White House Conference on Missing, Exploited and Runaway Children (2002).  Blaha was selected as the recipient of the CASA of Cook County 2010 Spirit Award and selected to participate in the Laura and John Arnold Giving Library for high-end donors. Blaha serves on the Interstate Commission for Juveniles, appointed in 2009. 

Runaways is an option?

Runaways is having escaped or run away from somewhere, in the society have any types of the problems that occasioned this but the specifically is in the people that receive discrimination for parents, friends in others.

They make up an estimated 20% of the homeless youth population while they at most constitute 10% the larger population of youth.

 The mister Margaret and colleagues at the City University of New York, published in 2012 the compared two different population, identified risk factors associated with homelessness among LGB youth. And this who had experienced homelessness at some point and those who never had.

In the throwaways the different situation is when the parents don’t have money for survive in the city or the different place, this is the principal factor, but in other factor is when has been abused for you father or cousin, etc.

In conclusion I said that have more factor for this situation but always there will be people that help in any situation.