For nearly 40 years, Kent Youth and Family Services has been a safety net for local kids and families who might otherwise slip through the cracks.
Drug- and alcohol-dependency issues, mental-health counseling, and just easing the transition for some into American culture – all of these are hot-button issues for the agency that grew out of a grassroots meeting over a Kent kitchen table in the ‘60s.
In short, KYFS has come a long way, and put a lot of wind beneath the wings of its clients, who by now tally in the thousands.
This September, the agency that has done so much for so many would like something back.
Stories.
As part of its 40th anniversary, KYFS wants to hear from the people who were part of its history: everyone from the early organizers to the teens and families who got their lives back on track by going through the agency’s many programs.
“We’re going to have an event scheduled for Sept. 25,” said Mike Heinisch, longtime executive director for the organization. “What we’re hoping to do is to reconnect with the people who have been a part of this agency. Board members, staff, but most importantly clients. If you were 15 years old and struggling with drug dependency (in the early days of KYFS), you’re 55 years old and have had, possibly, a successful life. We’re looking for those stories, and people to tell those stories, at our event.”
While Heinisch couldn’t put an exact number on the amount of clients his agency has served, the demand has grown considerably over the years. That history ranges from KYFS’s humble beginnings serving perhaps 50 to 100 people, to this year, where the agency will serve anywhere from 5,000-7,000 youngsters. With their associated family members, that means upwards of 11,000 people this year will be see some level of service from the organization.
That’s a long and committed route for an agency that got its start in the late 1960s, when a group of Kent School District parents and staff, worried about the growing influence of drugs on the young people in their community, began meeting in the kitchen of Kent residents and parents Mary and Brooks Loop.
Just a short while later, these discussions prompted another local person – businessman Don Bell – to donate a Kent home as a drop-in site for youth.
The rest, of course, is history. Over the years, KYFS added more components to its repertoire of services, widening its range of programs to tackle everything from homelessness, gang violence and immigration-related issues.
But through it all — the grants, the paperwork, the training and all the other administrative things that make KYFS function — there is a common thread.
The people.
Whether they are clients, counselors, or simply family members who were happy to see a teenager take their life back.
Heinisch is hoping this community of very special people can meet, just for a day, to share their stories, and their lives.
Considering what this organization has done for Kent and the surrounding South King County region, that really isn’t too much to ask.
If you are connected with KYFS, or know someone who is, please contact Heinisch at 253-859-0300 ext. 3002, or e-mail him at mikeh@kyfs.org.
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