Help for the young and formerly homeless

For many homeless teenagers and those in foster care, the approach of their 18th birthday is cause for fear and confusion, not celebration. Now legally adults, they have "aged out" of the system and temporary youth shelters.

Camden DREAMS - a program of the nonprofit Center for Family Services Inc., with offices throughout New Jersey - provides long-term, affordable housing to a fortunate handful of young adults who have crossed that threshold.

Thirteen residents live independently in award-winning, new Camden DREAMS apartments in Camden's Cooper Plaza section. They receive counseling and support from center staff members, who help them find jobs and educational opportunities, and act as positive role models.

About half of the participants have come out of foster care, said Kaali Cohen, senior program director of residential services.

"This program creates an outlet for those youth," Cohen said. They "have a place to go and continue to receive the care that is needed."

Cohen said counselors work with tenants on their strengths and weaknesses, teaching them how to make a dentist appointment, open a checking account, fill out paperwork to apply to school, go grocery shopping, or do laundry.

"We teach them how to take care of their own place," she said. "Why do you separate your whites from your colors, how do I properly wash the dishes, how often should I be dusting?"

To live in Camden DREAMS - on Benson Street, a few doors down from the center - applicants must be city residents 18 to 21 years old and either working or in school. Rent is set at a third of a tenant's income, and leases are renewable for up to five years.

"We see a lot of young people in need," said Merilee Rutolo, a center vice president. "When there's no room in Camden DREAMS, we work to find other potential housing solutions for them."

The Camden DREAMS apartments accepted their first residents in January. One-bedroom units were carved out of a formerly abandoned home and two apartment buildings. The units have hardwood floors, solar electric heating and cooling systems and other "green" features. The transformation, by Joseph F. McKernan Jr. Architects & Associates, cost $3 million.

"We really have been an active part in revitalizing the community," said Richard Stagliano, president of the center. For its commitment to affordable housing and the neighborhood, Camden DREAMS recently received a Governor's Excellence in Housing Award from the state Department of Community Affairs and Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency.

"We're ecstatic," said Eileen Henderson, vice president of Child and Family Services. "It was a privilege for us to be recognized."

Camden DREAMS and its services are a collaborative effort, Henderson said. Funding has come from seven different sources, including city, county and state government entities.

Camden DREAMS is one of the first resources in the state for teenagers transitioning out of foster care, Stagliano said.

For those who aren't fortunate to be in Camden DREAMS, Cohen said, "you have many youths that continue couch-surfing, living with friends, or living with overcrowded relatives."

Tyisha King, 20, lives in a Camden DREAMS apartment. She just obtained her driver's license and is working at a Wal-Mart while preparing to go back to school.

"I really like my apartment; I'm glad I'm on my own," said King, who came out of foster care.

"I get help when I need it," she said. "This program really does help me."

Each resident has a case manager who assists with the legal, vocational and educational aspects of the resident's life, such as how to make a doctor's appointment or responsibly budget.

Support also comes in the form of a counselor, who addresses the emotional and behavioral aspects of the residents' lives.

Some tenants may have been on their own from a young age and think they have independent living skills, but don't know how to properly take care of themselves, Cohen said.

"Change can become difficult because it can challenge them; it challenges what they know," she said. "For those youth that are scared of succeeding, they may not like the program."

Others, however, "appreciate it and want to grow from it," Cohen said. "It's about how much are they willing to work to accomplish the goals that they have set for themselves."

The apartments have a common area, and the residents have a tenants' association. They also elect someone to sit on the neighborhood association.

"A lot of kids come off the street; they don't have a place to go," King said. "I always tell them to come fill out an application."

Henderson said one of the most important goals of Camden DREAMS was to help its residents realize they have positive opportunities ahead. The "A" in dreams stands for "achieving the ability to visualize a positive future," she said.

"A lot of the young adults we work with maybe didn't see positive opportunities ahead of them," she said.