Sep. 14—ASHLAND — A drop-in center aimed at gearing young adults for adulthood held their ribbon cutting on Thursday.
The Drop House had its grand opening at its new location in Ashland aiming to help youth and young adults transition into adulthood. The youth center will focus on behavioral health challenges.
Madison Arrington, Regional Coordinator who works with Lawrence County and Boyd County drop-in centers, said the TAYLRD program is very beneficial.
"The TAYLRD (Transition Age Youth Launching Realized Dreams) program creates our drop-in center, and what our drop-in centers are is a safe place for young adults and teenagers to come and drop in whenever they feel they need some extra support. We provide therapy, community support, youth care services and employment services that we can instantly within 24 hours offer."
The program was funded by a 2014 grant awarded to Kentucky from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The goal is to serve young people at risk of developing behavioral health challenges.
"I learned at a very young age that my purpose was to help people," Arrington said. "I have a giving heart, especially for the young people in our community. There's data that shows there is a gap in this age group — drop-in centers are more appealing to that age group. Mental health has always been important, but now more than ever."
Jennifer Willis, Chief Executive Officer of Pathways, said the Drop House is a place where young adults can feel safe and receive behavioral support.
"It's a support program for young adults, Willis said. "The beauty of this location is you do not have to receive any services from Pathways or be a Pathway patient."
Eighteen- to 25-year-olds' time to drop in are between 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 13- to 18-year-olds' time to drop in is 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Willis said the drop-in center offers young adults information on cooking, grocery shopping, gardening, job searching, and doing laundry.
"They can come here to have tutoring after school, use the computers to apply for jobs and learn to cook. It can be as much or as little as you want it to be," she said. "This is a safe place for kids to come, and we are staffed with a combination of therapists and peer support specialists."
Young adults who go to the Drop House have access to a therapist, youth peer support, community support associate, targeted case manager and supported employment specialist.
Mental health is such a big issue today, Willis said.