Lydia’s Place is a non-profit organization based in Oconee County that helps youth ages 17 to 24 who have “aged out” of the foster care system or are experiencing homelessness. These youth can receive transitional housing, life skills, job placement, and more through this faith-based organization.
Founded in 2017 by local advocate April Farlow, Lydia’s Place steps in to help children in the Athens area who may have nowhere else to turn. When someone comes to them, their team thoroughly evaluates what the person needs and develops a plan to aid them with the ultimate goal of getting them where they want to go. Simply put, “Lydia’s Place demonstrates God’s love by providing basic living needs to young adults who have experienced foster care or housing insecurities while promoting their growth to independence.”
This organization is meeting vital needs in our community and the state. In Georgia alone, between 400 and 700 children “age out” of the foster system each year. Around 20% of foster children who “age out” become homeless at age 18. Lydia’s Place helps these youth with housing and teaches them how to manage a home, with skills from cooking and cleaning to budgeting their income. They’re filling in the gap for this critical time in a person’s life, where other systems may have left off or cannot help these kids.
In addition to housing and teaching life skills, Lydia’s Place helps to outfit living spaces for people in their program with everything from trashcans and toilet paper to bedding and toiletries. In fact, they always need new toiletries to support the youth in their program, and an easy way for you to get involved is to make a purchase from their Amazon List. The purchase will be shipped directly to Lydia’s Place for distribution to the youth in their program.
Lydia’s Place is named after the founder’s grandmother, Lydia Hight, who used her small income to purchase land and put three homes on the property. Here, she housed people and families who needed a place to live until they were ready to relaunch. This act of love inspired the name of this local non-profit that is doing significant work in the lives of the youth in our area. Learn more at lydias-place.com.
Lydia's Place Amazon List QR Code:
