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Ken: dedicated to helping CH kids for 18 years

Q. What inspired you to give your time to Covenant House kids?

A. Coming from a loving family in Toledo, Ohio, I was never exposed to the other side of the equation. I simply wasn't aware that a whole generation of poverty-stricken kids were being preyed upon.

Everybody wants to do something for other people. I just feel providing help for this age group can make a real difference for the future. It can be something as simple as serving pizza, sitting down and talking, or working on crafts. However you volunteer your time, what's really important is to show these kids someone cares about them.
Q. Why did you decide to volunteer and join the Young Professionals at Covenant House?

A. The opportunity to interact with the kids was a big factor. It makes giving your time seem more real than just attending a fundraiser at a restaurant. But the social network is also a really positive aspect of the Young Professionals. I moved from Toledo and didn't know anyone in South Florida, so it was a great chance to meet people. And it's great to be walking in an airport somewhere and run into someone I met at a charity event for Covenant House kids ... it makes it feel like we are getting the word out there and making a difference.


Q. What do you find unique about Covenant House's mission?

A. Four words taken right from the Covenant House mission statement: Absolute respect, unconditional love. Every young person who comes through the door is treated this way. For a lot of them, it's the first time in their lives.

I also think the open intake policy makes Covenant House special. Every police officer in Broward County knows that if a kid is on the street, Covenant House will help. And the fact that Covenant House helps a lot of older youth, ages 18-21, is important. That's an age group that gets overlooked and slips through the cracks of the social service system.


Q. What was the greatest reward you've experienced from giving your time, first as a Young Professional volunteer and now as a Board Member?

A. I was at the crisis shelter and noticed a young girl who was off by herself, not talking to any of the staff, volunteers or kids. I found out she was deaf. I had learned sign language from my late wife Becky, who was deaf and worked with deaf children. And so I was able to communicate with this young girl, and I think it made a real difference to her.

To be able to use a skill set that I learned from Becky to help a child ... it was a very special way to keep Becky's loving spirit alive.
Nineline
How You Can Help


People often ask us, "What can I do to help?" Here are a few suggestions:

  • Stay informed on how we are working at Covenant House to help kids. Ask to receive Sister Patricia Cruise's monthly newsletter.

  • There are a wide variety of volunteer opportunities at Covenant House. Volunteers are needed to staff the Nineline, our 24-hour hotline for kids and parents in crisis. We need volunteer mentors to work one-on-one with our kids. And it is only with the help of hundreds of dedicated volunteers that we're able to keep the doors of our crisis shelters open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

  • Consider joining The Covenant House Faith Community, a group of full-time volunteers who put their faith into action by dedicating a year of their lives to the mission of Covenant House. Community members live together in prayer and in service to the homeless and runaway children at Covenant House.