Pubdate: Tue, 31 May 2005 Source: Denver Post (CO) Copyright: 2005 The Denver Post Corp Contact: http://www.denverpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122 Author: Robert Sanchez, Denver Post Staff Writer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) SURVEY GIVES SNAPSHOT OF STREET KIDS Alex Montgomery once spent his mornings on Denver streets figuring how he would steal money for his next cocaine fix. At 19, he has been jailed for credit-card fraud, lived homeless for a year and shuttled in and out of drug-treatment and mental-health facilities. "My life was going downhill," says Montgomery, who grew up in suburban Denver, began using drugs at 14 and later dropped out of high school. "I didn't eat for days, my family rejected me and I was sleeping outside." Now, a federal grant and a new survey coordinated by the Urban Peak Denver youth services group could help target homeless teens such as Montgomery, and get them more focused attention faster, before they become homeless adults. An early review of data from a survey of 234 homeless youths - which officially will be released this week - shows more than one-third of the respondents in Denver attempted suicide at least once. Almost a quarter were asked to trade sex for shelter or food. A vast majority experimented with at least one illegal drug, in some cases cocaine, often before their 18th birthdays. In many cases, the city's homeless youths had escaped dangerous homes that included abusive or alcoholic parents. Often, though, they found themselves in another perilous situation. One in 10 sold sex or visited an emergency room at least once in November and December. Denver's responses mirrored national averages, according to the study spread last year among eight cities nationwide. Overall, more than 700 homeless children and adults ages 14 to 27 were given questionnaires in cities from Austin, Texas, to St. Louis to Minneapolis. The survey represents only a small fraction of the estimated 1.3 million homeless youths in the United States. In Colorado, for instance, the survey included more than 280 homeless youths in Boulder, Colorado Springs and Denver. A separate survey released this month by the Metropolitan Denver Homeless Initiative put the total number of homeless youths in Denver alone at more than 600 last year, up almost 40 percent from 2002. "For someone who doesn't study these issues, our numbers could be very shocking," says Jamie Van Leeuwen, director of development and public affairs for Urban Peak Denver, which started the survey with $2,500. Homeless advocates say the new data could help secure federal and state funding at a time when budgets are being slashed and could bring more attention to homeless youths. It also could help people such as Montgomery - who was passed back and forth in the social-service system before finding subsidized housing and drug rehabilitation - get off the streets earlier. Michael O'Neill, who coordinates nationwide speaking events for the Washington-based National Coalition for the Homeless, says it's almost impossible to get an accurate count of homeless children on the streets. "But we do know that all of these kids are in danger," O'Neill says. "They need help." Today, Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and various agencies are expected to announce the release of federal money to help fund drug treatment and mental-health care for Denver's homeless youths. Early estimates put the federal grant at $250,000, though officials from DeGette's Colorado office and the Denver Department of Human Services would not elaborate. "The survey and the money guarantee that we're not going to build programs in the dark," Van Leeuwen said. "Obviously, other people are seeing that there's a problem that needs to be addressed." Montgomery - who has a boyish face and wears a baseball hat cocked to one side - realized that the problem began with him. He recently found subsidized housing, earned his GED, is attending regular group meetings and has been sober for five months. Next, he wants to get a job and plans this fall to attend the Emily Griffith Opportunity School or Metropolitan State College of Denver to study business. Most important, he says, he dropped dangerous old friends from his life and is trying to rebuild trust with his parents. "Last week, my mom let me stay at her house for three days," the teenager says with a smile. "That was real nice." - --- MAP posted-by: Beth