Steph grant: Hi L! Tell us why HomePlate Youth Services exists & how you feel it's making a difference:

L Parker: HomePlate started in 2005 when a small group of community members had a vision and a small $3,000 grant. At that time, there were no services available for young people experiencing homelessness in Hillsboro and Washington County at large. In the last 21 years, young people have come to HomePlate to find a multitude of offerings that address both physical and emotional needs. Here they can find a hot meal, a shower, and resources for obtaining housing as well as finding safety, community, and acceptance. HomePlate makes a difference by showing youth that they are deserving of care, curiosity, and compassion simply for being who they are. I feel that HomePlate also brings awareness to what can seem like an "invisible" problem compared to the general public's assumptions and stereotypes around unhoused youth.

When I was sixteen years old, I got called into the principal's office in my high school. I couldn't determine what I had done wrong, so I walked into the office with a head full of confusion. The school counselor sitting there knew a truth that I had been trying to hide. I was staying on a friend's couch because of instability in my own home, due to my mother's addictions and legal troubles. The counselor asked me to confirm that I was homeless for the school's records. I was still confused. How could I be homeless if I had a place to stay?

I shoved down the mental health struggles I was experiencing at the time because I felt I should be grateful to have a couch to sleep on. I felt like I needed to make myself small in order to not draw attention to myself. I wanted to make myself agreeable to all, because I felt unloveable and concerned about my survival. I spent a lot of time in my late teens to early 20s experiencing horrible depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts.

If somewhere like HomePlate existed around me when I was younger, I would have known that I was still worthy of receiving resources and care. I would have known that it was okay to take up space, be unapologetically queer, and to not hide so many parts of me to make others happy. I would have felt loved, and hopefully I would have believed it after so many years of going without.

No matter the form that housing instability takes, for a young person it can be life-threatening. This is why I think HomePlate makes such a difference. In an area of Oregon where houseless youth are not always as blatantly perceived, HomePlate's compassion and presence saves lives.

On THE HOMEPLATE site it says that the number of houseless students in Washington County is 3,265. CAN YOU SHARE SOME statistics on unhoused LGBTQ+ youth specifically?

40% of the youth that we serve identify as LGBTQ+. This statistic alone paints a picture, when 15-20% of young adults in the US identify as LGBTQ+. The disproportionate representation of queer youth that walk through our doors shows that it is still not always safe to be one's full self. "Coming out" can lead to being disowned and kicked out. LGBTQ+ youth face higher risks around substance use, sexual health, and suicide. At HomePlate, we don't ask people to erase or minimize themselves to receive the care and safety they deserve.

How are the recent funding cuts personally impacting the youth HomePlate works with:

Our nation’s political and funding landscape has led to painful budget losses at HomePlate. Over the last three years, the number of youth coming to HomePlate as a beacon of hope has tripled. During the same period, HomePlate has had to reduce staffing by one-third, and gutted their flagship Youth Employment and Education Departments. These were programs that were working. Programs that were changing lives and creating optimism for young people without options. Drop-in hours are being reduced as well. What happens when one of those young people is no longer able to find employment, education, or even a safe place to go during the most critical hours of the evening? These funding cuts reduce opportunities to create a different life for the youth we serve. The strongest predictor of chronic adult homelessness is whether someone experienced housing instability when they were young. Funding cuts lead to haunting impacts down the road: in our medical systems, our criminal justice system, and our communities as a whole.

Tell the readers more about this incredible Gala i got to photograph at the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts:

Despite HomePlate being around for twenty-one years, this is only the second gala we have hosted. We were particularly excited this year to have Poison Waters as our MC, thanks to a connection made by our Peer Support Specialist, Frankie Parra. Poison's levity was much appreciated as we presented a sobering reality of funding cuts and increased needs to those in attendance-- elected officials, small business owners, and longtime supporters of HomePlate. We were able to raise close to $80,000! Looking ahead, the new Dev/Comms team is excited to plan the next iteration: HomePlate Homecoming in Fall 2027:)

How would you like to see the world differently in your lifetime?

A world where patriarchy, imperialism, and capitalism are not the dominating ideologies. A world where love is a verb, not a feeling. A world where teachers and social workers are treated and paid fairly. One of my guiding ideologies is to leave the world a better place than I found it, so my aspiration is to do my (tiny) part in creating the world I want to see. I hope you'll join me!🖤