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Youth homelessness is a growing
issue here in Somerville

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a number of children don't have

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a place they call home reporter Colby
Smallville has the story you'd never know

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that some of these Somerville high students
are homeless across the country and

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here in Massachusetts youth homelessness
is rising. The State Department of

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Education says twelve thousand to
thirteen thousand students do not have

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a steady place to sleep. At least twenty
five of them are in Somerville and that

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number is probably too low. But I
think that this is that estimated

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but that is no way of knowing because I'm

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a homebody youth they are is scattered
they are everywhere they could be on the

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streets they could be called Surfing and
not everybody is steps up and say that

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they are homeless. Eighteen year old Annette
Cleary explains how she ended up with

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nowhere to go. I kind of went on this

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a downward spiral after my dad passed away
in the chair and I kind of was like on

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the whole like rebellious stage of not
wanting to movie or not want to be here but

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started getting to like parties come home
drunk you know smoking the meat all that

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type of stuff. I'm originally
from California moved to chum to

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Chelmsford Massachusetts and ended up in

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a group home Jermaine remain Lawrence over
in Arlington and I was only supposed to

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be there for six months just to kind of
get my life together my mom said if I can

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get myself together I'm at home that didn't
end up working out that way and then

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she eventually she was like I don't want
to home I want to do with her doesn't care

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if she's homeless she says if I so much to
go to that home. And then shortstop came

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up and I took the opportunity and I came
here in December the middle of December

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and I've been here ever since. But not
everyone is as lucky as clearly they end up

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on the street and are more likely to engage
in harmful behavior than youth who are

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not homeless according to Representative
Denise Provo I am deeply concerned

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that many of these young
people will not have much of

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a future unless there are stronger
efforts now to understand

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their situation and create

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a better life for them.
Provo is working to pass

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a bill that would require the state to
accurately count homeless youth and get them

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the assistance they need. It's

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a very simple bill it requires the Department
of Education to collect data about

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homeless students to. To come up with

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a more accurate census than they have now
so that we know the actual numbers and to

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to look at information about the students
to compare them to the population of

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students who have some place to live
and see what the challenges are

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but is a really a unified if for

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a collective formed to get the the youth
the homeless count in Massachusetts

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in and really to provide in terms
of policy to foster Paula says

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that will come up with services for
them and according to the you needs I

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think the the misconception out there is
that you know people are homeless because

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they choose so in in is not. Cleary did not
choose to be homeless and she does not

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plan to stay that way she recently enroll
that empire beauty school and plans to

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continue her studies there this fall but
my goal for the future is to hopefully I

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get my own place which are not going to
happen but to get my own place that on my

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own get my life started and give

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a cosmetology license and
pretty much sensual rooms one.

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Wish I could start over all I'm going to
go over again but I don't wish this upon

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anybody but think as the best advice I can
gather just to stay strong and you know

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keep your mind set on one thing
and. Get scripts relation.

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Advocates like we're told Oh and Representative
Provost know it will take more than

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patience to combat the growing number of
homeless youth in Somerville and in this

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country for Somerville neighborhood news
I'm called the small girl to find out more

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and or to get involved visit

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a homeless dot org or call seven eight one
five nine five seven five seven zero and

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Marcella don't you know high school
students who live in shelters and motel Yes

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actually and I think there were get that
is extremely impressive considering the

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fact that they don't have a
stable home that's hard to hear.