A first-of-its-kind program for Lebanon County will give local youth with mental health and substance abuse issues a jumpstart in life.
Jump Start is being launched in early October when the first of up to three transition-aged youth with disabilities and who have a history of substance abuse move into a newly renovated home on N. 12th St., Lebanon.
LebTown was given an exclusive interview and a tour of the home about halfway through renovations.
The home, which is the former Lebanon County Housing and Redevelopment Authority offices, is being remodeled to include three bedrooms and baths, and two kitchens and living rooms for up to three individuals ages 18 to 24 who will live there.
Read More: Lebanon County officials to create residence for transition-aged youth
For Holly Leahy, administrator of Lebanon County Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities/Early Intervention (MH/ID/EI), renovations to Jump Start’s new home can’t come fast enough. As of last week, the drywall was nearly completed and some rooms were ready to be painted. Two of the three private full bathrooms have been installed. Flooring is waiting to be completed.
“There have been a lot of emotions,” said Leahy, who became somewhat choked up while speaking. “As I walked through the door, I said I was thrilled that we’re at this point for this project, this Jump Start. This has been something in our minds for years and it is something that we knew was needed and we knew we wanted to create, but we just had to find a way to create it.”
Progress towards completion has heightened those emotions.
“So I used the word ‘thrilled,’ and I am absolutely thrilled to be here today and to be actively discussing an open date, and residents and referrals,” said Leahy. “But there’s also some anxiety that comes along with that because there are so many components, but our young adults need this so desperately and to be able to provide this to our community is a blessing.”
Renovations and furniture, costing an estimated $446,448, are being covered by capital funding from the state Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. The Lebanon County Housing Authority is administering the renovations.
“I love it,” said Karen Raugh, executive director of the housing authority. “As housing advocates, we are just super excited to add more housing to Lebanon County. But when Holly and Kasey came to us, we love to work with them and MH/ID/EI is such a great community partner to work with. We didn’t know at first that this was the first of its kind, but in working with them, we’re going to find a way to make it work. We’re always going to say yes when they come to us for a project.”
Jump Start is a collaborative effort between the county’s mental health agency, its housing authority and the program’s service provider, Mountville-based Community Services Group.
“This is a unique opportunity and if I have to pick a word of emotion, mine is hopeful,” said Jen McLaughlin, director of Mental Health Services for CSG. “It gives me so much hope for these young adults who would not have this opportunity otherwise. Some of our folks, our young adults, struggle with the illnesses that they have or the addictions that they might struggle with and they haven’t had a lot of positive support. We’re here to give them the support that they need and the skills that they need so that they don’t need us anymore. That’s our ultimate goal.”
The group leaders have had to forge their own path since the program is unique, according to Kasey Felty, director of Mental Health for the county MH/ID/EI.
“We didn’t mirror other programs, but it was a lot of education, reading online, and seeing what other programs around the United States are offering and then we kind of built this specifically for what was needed and beneficial for Lebanon County,” said Felty.
“There’s a few others around Pennsylvania, but it’s still one of the first of its kind,” added Leahy.
The county closed on the home in March and contracted with CSG to provide services. Since then, CSG hired an individual with an early August start date to run Jump Start. The housing support case manager will have an office on the first floor of the residence but will not live there.
“There’s a lot of training that has to happen just (to work) for CSG alone. There is a two- to three-week training program,” said McLaughlin. “This individual will be working very closely with the residents to help them learn all of the necessary skills they need.”
CSG will assist with housing applications and Section 8 vouchers, help residents understand and establish credit scores, and teach a plethora of social, job and life skills required for independent living. Budgeting and finance are two of the bigger skill sets that residents will learn.
Skylar Deitrick, program director of Psychiatric Rehabilitation for CSG, said their new case manager has experience working with similar clients at a rehabilitation center.
“She came from a rehab center where she was working with co-occurring disorders, which is what we’ll be working with,” said Deitrick. “She did a lot of after-care planning with individuals at the rehab center. Helping them to find a place to live, working at other services, so she has some of those experiences already.”
Also included are guiding residents to obtain a job, a residency requirement. Employment must be obtained three months after moving in, added Leahy, and residents are allowed to live at Jump Start from 12 to 18 months.
“We will subsidize their rent while they are in this house, in this home,” she said. “Here at Jump Start they will pay no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. That will allow them to learn how to save money, but also to save money for a security deposit or first month of rent after they are ready to transition to their (permanent) home after Jump Start.”
While would-be residents can be referred from other social service agencies or apply for housing through the county’s mental health department, there will be a rigid vetting process for all applicants.
To be eligible for Jump Start, the following criteria must be met:
- Individuals must be between the ages of 18 to 24.
- Open with Lebanon County MH/ID/EI and eligible for Mental Health funded services.
- Serious mental health diagnosis or co-occurring substance abuse and serious mental illness.
- Current sobriety from drug and/or alcohol use for a minimum of six months prior to admission.
- Have a current source of income; or, able to obtain a source of income within the first three months of admission.
Although no applications have been submitted as of publication, Leahy knows the need exceeds the home’s capacity.
“We know that there are so many young adults in our community who are searching for housing, who are really struggling,” she said. “It’s just a matter of word of mouth and getting it out there.”
When renovations are completed, vetting potential tenants will begin.
“We will work with our provider, Community Service Group, to schedule an open house to show it to the community and actually do some marketing as well before we actually have residents in the home,” said Leahy, adding that renovations are slated for completion by Sept. 20.
The home will have one resident on the first floor. Each bedroom comes with a lock for privacy, and the resident who lives on the first level will have their own kitchen. The second floor will contain a kitchen for those two residents since their skills will need more development.
Both floors will have their own living rooms for residents to interact with each other while learning valuable social skills.
Leahy noted that residents will be asked to meet their guests outside the home and that all three residents will be the same gender. Additionally, no overnight guests are allowed.
“Our intention is not to have co-ed (living),” said Leahy. “It will depend on our referrals whether we have all females or all males but we will not be co-ed.”
Felty noted that as residents transition to independent living, the gender arrangement will be fluid, meaning the second set of residents may not be the same sex as the first group.
Regardless of how the program shifts in the future, the goal is to give all residents an opportunity to succeed in life.
“This will be the jump-start that they need to learn skills, to be fully supported, to know that they can do this and that they will be able to accomplish whatever their goals are,” said Leahy. “Whatever they will want to be, they will know that they can do this and this will give them the jump-start that they need into adulthood and to be successful in our community.”
Any Lebanon countians who meet the housing requirements and who are interested in housing can contact Felty at kasey.felty@lebanonpa.gov to get their names on the Jump Start applicant list.
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