Homeless Children's Education Fund delivers education, opportunity, and so much more | KD Sunday Spotlight
Homelessness hits harder when you're young.
For high school senior Morgan Keller, she said she became homeless after experiencing abuse by her father.
"I had come home from school one day, and my dad was waiting for me outside, and he said, 'Give me your keys,'" she recalled.
Keller said she knew her world was all falling apart.
"It's really sad that people have to go through this type of stuff," she said. "You know, you should be taken care of, you should see your parents as somebody that you can come to, not somebody you should be afraid of."
So, her mom brought her to live in Pittsburgh at her grandparents' home. While having a tough day at school, Keller said her school counselor connected her with the nonprofit called the Homeless Children's Education Fund.
"Ever since, my life has completely turned around," Keller said. "They helped me financially. I was struggling with getting basic necessities, like body wash, toothpaste, and they have provided everything to me."
The non-profit's President and CEO, AJ Jefferson, said, it's more than providing bare necessities.
"Education is the number one intervention," said Jefferson.
Keller's involvement with the Homeless Children's Education Fund kept her and 1,100 others each year, clothed, fed, and most importantly, in school.
"We provide access to a variety of different educational programs and instructors, to ensure that our students stay focused on securing their high school diploma and move forward as a transition into young adulthood," Jefferson said.
Continuing education is key. When a child is chronically moving, due to homelessness or unstable housing, they see a regression of about six months in their education, but Jefferson said, HCEF's dedication to helping the homeless youth in our community means it is seeing a graduation rate of high school students participating in its programs, at about 90%.
The nonprofit's programming even hits the streets with its mobile classroom called Winnie's Wagon. It's a van that brings teachers and tutoring to where students are. The nonprofit also introduces students, like Keller, to possible careers with the Teen CEO program.
"They've helped me through everything, they've given me opportunities that I would never think I'd be at, like here right now," said Keller.
It's one non-profit with 11 programs changing countless homeless children's lives.
"You're not in stable housing; you're sleeping at friends' houses a few nights; you can come to them. They're great people. They can help you with anything. Take advantage of the resources you have," said Keller.
The next step for the homeless children's education fund is buying another Winnie's Wagon, or as it'll be called, Winnie's Steam Machine. They hope to have the second one operating in March 2026.
For more information on the homeless children's education fund and all its programs, click on the link here.