Each year, between 1.6 and 2.8 million youth run away. Of those, teens between 12 and 17 are more likely to end up homeless. Children and teens who run away are also more susceptible to kidnapping by strangers. In the effort to keep teens off the streets, Quik Trip Gas Stations are an official Safe Place.
“Safe Place is basically a place, just like a police station or a fire station, where abandoned and runaway kids can come – we’re not just gonna shoo them away – it’s basically a place where they can come, feel relaxed, and know that it is a safe environment for them,” QT employee Ryan Morino said. “It’s also a place where we can connect with Child Protective Services and they can get better intel of how kids can get away from their parents.”
Safe Place is a national non-profit organization that provide troubled and threatened youth with a place to go when they feel in danger.
“Quick Trip has been a safe place for at least eleven years,” QT worker Shea Evans said.
At Safe Places, kids will be given a drink and a meal at no cost, while a volunteer gets them into contact with a professional.
“We would have the manager on duty handle the situation [if a runaway] were to come, me as a trainer would be able to contact and get a hold of local Child Protective Services who would send a person or a caretaker for the situation,” Morino said.
Police station, fire Stations, and hospitals are all Safe Places, where teenagers can turn to escape abusive families and where adults can report unsafe environments for teens.
“In instances where a child comes and say, “I’m running away, I’m being abused” we take a report, take them into custody, and then turn them over to the CPS and CPS will find them a foster home,” campus officer Mark Mitchell said.
The workers at QT follow the same protocol in the instance that a runaway or abandoned child comes into the store.
“We have a direct number we call, and it is someone in the Child Protective Services – it’s not like the police or nothing – and they come and take care of the situation,” Evans said.
Statistics show that one in seven kids will run away at some point before turning 18. Consequently, there are up to 3 million homeless children on the streets in the United States alone.
“We make it as comfortable as possible for [those who show up], give them a couple of drinks, maybe a freezoni or something like them, let them try a couple of flatbreads or anything like that,” Morino said. “We make it as comfortable as possible, that way they don’t feel as if they have to go back to that place they just got away from.”
At Safe Places like QT, the employees are not trained to take care of runaways, but instead get the child in contact with trained professionals.
“[We didn’t undergo] any training,” Morino said. “Basically we just have some numbers and contact information to get a hold of those who are better suited to handle these situations.”
