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CHRIS Kids Celebrates New Projects’ Grand Opening
By Laura Douglas-Brown, Georgia Voice—CHRIS Kids’, an organization that aims to help LGBT youth in foster care transition to adulthood, is celebrating the grand opening of its CHRIS Counseling Center, Education Center and Summit Trail Apartment Community. The apartment community houses 44 young adults who are transitioning from state care to independence. They receive not only housing but also individual assessments, counseling, and other services to assist them toward independence.
The services they offer are especially geared toward LGBT youth in foster care. These youth are particularly at-risk for homelessness. Recently, however, CHRIS combined with LGBT specific program called Rainbow Project with the general youth program called TransitionZ. They now serve both groups under one banner.The agency relies on donations, especially from the LGBT community. The organization sometimes does not get support from other groups because of their inclusionary policies, so they need help from their own community. CEO Kathy Colbenson says that this support is crucial to the agency’s financial health.
“Frankly, we don’t get some other donors because of our stand, but we don’t deny who we are and how we serve people, so our LGBT donors and supporters are critically important,” she says.
Courtesy of Georgia Voice
Original Article: CHRIS Kids helps LGBT youth find home, support