1. Lexington Youth and Family Services, Inc.
“Strengthening the Safety Net”
7 Harrington Rd, Lexington 02421
LYFS side entrance door

2. 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Lexington School Department
SUICIDE:
In the past year 211 Lexington High School students seriously considered suicide, 113 made a plan and 50 attempted suicide, and half of these tried more than once to kill themselves.
DEPRESSION:
275 students reported feeling depressed often.
CUTTING AND SELF-INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR:
173 students reported having hurt themselves as a result of their depression.
ANGER:
289 students reported that even after expressing their anger, they still have trouble forgetting about it.

3. As a community, we see more… Stress, depression, & anxiety
Eating disorders
Cutting
Suicidal/homicidal thoughts or actions
Substance abuse
Domestic violence
Bullying
Other types of at-risk behavior

4. These are the problems we want to
address because teens at risk often
feel invisible.
The challenge is to reach
our teens in crisis who are
disconnected and much harder
to identify.

5. We are:
A private, non-profit, after-school safety net for at risk teens to complement existing town services.
Open from 3pm to 6pm every Friday for walk-in and by appointment. In the future, we will expand services to additional weekdays and evenings.
Located in the center of town, on the Battle Green, at the First Parish Church, 7 Harrington Rd., the right hand side entrance marked “LYFS”.

6. LYFS Entrance

7. LYFS Office

8. Current Services
Free, adolescent-initiated, therapy and crisis counseling for ages 11– 22 and their families
Specific Services include:
Evaluation & short term therapy
Crisis intervention & triage
Referral services
Adolescent & parent groups
Outreach and education
A teen “Safety Net” working with other community resources to promote a collaborative system

9. Through community outreach and word-of-mouth, response has been growing. Since spring 2011, our office has been open Fridays, 3-6pm and we have provided:
108 Crisis Intervention and Counseling Sessions to Lexington teens and families.
More than half of these counseling sessions occurred this fall of Therefore the need for our services is growing.
Many young people report how depressed, stressed and/or suicidal they feel. Our goal is to help teens cope with their crisis.

10. We quickly found out that
we need MORE…
Staff hours
Volunteer therapists
And (maybe) more space
How can you help?
Please make a donation now.
Please volunteer for fundraising and advocacy.
We need licensed therapists from 3-6pm or 6-9pm weekdays.

11. Long-term Goals: Social and support groups for both teens and parents
A drop-in center – an accepting, welcoming place to “just be”
Peer leadership opportunities that will empower kids to reach out and help one another, with guidance from LYFS therapists
A crisis intervention hotline, to be serviced by teens, with LYFS staff training and guidance

12. LYFS Community Board is a group of concerned citizens.
Board of Directors
Bill Blout - President
Constance Counts - Treasurer
Michele Cooke - Clerk
Tim Dugan
Mary-Jane Donovan
Joan Robinson
Betsey Weiss
Youth Advisory Board
Kate Powers
Talia Richkin
Jonah Watt
Ben Flammer
Staff
Marsha Lazar - Director
Sharon Stirling - Counselor
…and four volunteer therapists
We welcome your interest in joining the board
or any other volunteer efforts.

13. The LYFS Youth Advisory Board is a group of dedicated Lexington teens who volunteer their time and input on important issues faced by their peers.

14. While office space is generously donated by the First Parish Church, we are not affiliated with any religious organization.
All of our volunteer therapists are licensed practitioners who donate their time.

15. Lexington Youth and Family Services, Inc.
Please give generously
and send a check to:
LYFS Inc.
7 Harrington Rd
Lexington, MA 02421
( )
LYFS is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Grants from The Foundation for MetroWest and CHNA, plus private donations support free, direct services.
Thank you 15