Laurel House, which was a transitional housing facility for at-risk teens in Orange County for more than 29 years before closing last August, reopens today.
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The Tustin home underwent renovations thanks to donors and community members, who are invited to tour the facility and meet former program graduates from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
According to Laurel House and Orange County Rescue Mission officials:
When news of the Laurel House's closure surfaced, the local community stepped in to help. Laurel House trustees handed over leadership and building ownership to Orange County Rescue Mission President Jim Palmer, and his team of new Laurel House Board Members.
After that transition, the organization received a $100,000 anonymous donation that allowed Laurel House to rid itself of accumulated debt. The organization also received a $50,000 grant from community philanthropists Howard and Roberta Ahmanson, as well as additional donations from various community businesses and individuals, in order to pay for renovations for the rundown house.
While the Laurel House has remained its own entity, it now has the support of the Orange County Rescue Mission for services and staffing, including healthcare, counseling and more.
With the only shelter for teen girls in Orange County providing long-term care and other programs, the nonprofit's goal is to end homelessness for at-risk teen girls by reunifying them with their families or moving them into positive living situations. The idea is to keep these girls off the streets and safe from human trafficking, gang involvement and a life of drug and alcohol dependency.
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OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.