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Covenant House holds vigil in Atlantic City for homeless youth
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ATLANTIC CITY - A cold drizzle fell Thursday evening as about 50 people lit candles in the courtyard of Covenant House and took time to remember youth who are still on the streets.
It was the 19th annual Covenant House vigil, held Thursday worldwide at branches of the organization that brings in abandoned teens from the streets and gives them a bed, meals, education and hope.
Covenant House is celebrating 20 years in Atlantic City, and Manager of Development Jennifer Williams reminded the group what things were like back in 1989.
"Where we're standing now tonight, this courtyard, was a big, abandoned building," Williams said.
Youngsters were living under the Boardwalk, and anywhere else they could find, and Covenant House was an outpost to give them a place to stay for a while, Williams said.
Ray Ellis, one of the first local Covenant House workers, said the group began with a minivan and a house on St. James Place that had no heat. The workers spent nights roaming the city in the van and picked up youngsters, often with no place to take them.
Former City Councilwoman Rosalind Norrell-Nance said she was on the governing body when the state Public Advocate's Office threatened to sue the city for the way it treated its homeless. But city residents opposed a youth shelter, saying it would attract homeless people from other towns.
The Rev. Stephen Siniari took her to New York Avenue, under the Boardwalk and to abandoned vehicles looking for youngsters, Norrell-Nance said.
"What I saw was a lot of young people I had taught in third and fifth grade," Norrell-Nance said. "It was not only outsiders, it was the boys and girls of our community."
Norrell-Nance said she went to the Planning Board when it discussed the measure. When the members were opposed, she stood up out of turn and told them they should be ashamed of themselves.
"Much to my surprise, they changed their minds and voted unanimously to bring the building here," Norrell-Nance said to the cheers from Thursday's gathering.
Current and former residents were grateful for the effort.
Joe Snapp, 19, originally of Pleasantville, said he ended up on the streets when his parents threw him out of the house. Covenant House provided him a safe place and regular meals so he could concentrate on getting his life together. He plans to go back to school and get a teaching degree.
Michael Luna, 20, of Atlantic City, didn't want to talk about his past. But now he has a job and is living at the Covenant House Rights of Passage building. He does motivational speaking at a Pleasantville church and hopes to work in the culinary arts.
"It's just comfort," Luna said. "They don't ask questions and take you right off the street. It gives you stability."
LeTitia Finnie, 19, said she came to Covenant House after she aged out of the foster-care system last year. She tried other programs for youth, but they didn't help her. The Covenant House staff are working with her on emotional issues, and she's sure it will all come together in time.
"It's up to me to be better than (my mother) was," Finnie said. "It's my job to break the chain and break the cycle."
Contact Elaine Rose:
609-272-7215
Posted in ATLANTIC CITY | BREAKING on Friday, November 6, 2009 5:00 am Updated: 2:56 pm.
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