BALTIMORE — A Baltimore organization that has been serving vulnerable youth since 1869 is expanding to address the area's growing homelessness crisis among young people.
James Dupree has experienced more challenges than most people his age. The 23-year-old had been caught in a cycle of homelessness and incarceration until he found Springboard Community Services.
"I come here for housing and also I come here for like support mentally, emotionally, spiritually," Dupree said. "Springboard definitely helped me a lot with my emotions and the way I think and the way I talk and communicate. They actually been a big support system in my life."
Springboard Community Services plans 25,000-square-foot training center with housing and restaurant
Springboard serves about 150 youth ages 14 to 24 at its day center on Falls Road. Executive Director F.T. Burden said the organization serves a diverse population of youth in crisis.
"They are runaways, throwaways, couch surfers," Burden said. "A number of our young people are aging out of foster care or they're escaping abuse or neglect. We serve quite a decent population of young people who are LGBTQ, parenting."
In recent years, demand for services has increased dramatically.
"We created this space here in 2020, during the middle of COVID, because there weren't a lot of safe spaces for young people to go in the city. There's probably about 1,200 young people that are on the street at any given time. Now, we're seeing even more," Burden says.
To meet this growing need, Springboard has launched an ambitious project: a 25,000-square-foot youth training center near City Hall featuring dormitory-style transitional housing, and a restaurant that will provide culinary training and jobs.
"This will be the first project of its kind in the state of Maryland and because we work in other jurisdictions, like Carroll County and Harford County and Baltimore County. They don't have these types of resources in those communities," Burden said. "We're going to hopefully be able to replicate what we're doing to serve young people in those communities."
The new facility is scheduled to open in early 2027. Meanwhile, the current center continues to serve youth like Jernard Roberts, a 22-year-old who became homeless last year and found Springboard to be a safe space.
"It's a really positive mental space because I really be going through a lot, you know, when I'm on my own," Roberts said. "They make me laugh and I just feel at home, you know. I don't get that feeling everywhere, so it's definitely something to cherish."
Both Dupree and Roberts represent success stories in progress. Dupree works at a local restaurant and is looking for a second job so he can get his own place. Roberts recently found housing thanks to Springboard and is enrolled in the workforce development program.
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