A vibrant RV, stocked with snacks, a PlayStation and shower, will hit the road this summer to get essentials out to young people in need.
The custom-built vehicle, dubbed the YouthUp mobile unit, is the Detroit Phoenix Center’s latest project to tackle housing insecurity among young people, ages 12 to 24. By partnering with community-based organizations and schools, the idea is to take basic resources — hygiene kits, food, laptops and internet — and a gaming space, straight to teens and young adults across metro Detroit, but primarily in the city. Nonprofit leaders say the project is a crucial way to help a hard-to-reach population that’s often hidden in plain sight .
“It’s an opportunity for us to meet young people just right where they are in the community,” Courtney Smith, CEO and founder of the nonprofit Detroit Phoenix Center, told the Free Press…