On a crisp September morning in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Kaitlyn Mackey laced up her sneakers and set out for Culliton Park, water bottles and bags of chips in tow. Mackey, an outreach worker for Valley Youth House, is a familiar face on these streets. Her mission? To reconnect with young adults experiencing homelessness—many of whom have slipped off the radar of local service providers, their whereabouts unknown, their needs unmet.
According to LancasterOnline, Mackey’s experience is far from unique. In 2023, a staggering 76% of young adults ages 18 to 25 who engaged with homeless services in Lancaster County disappeared from the system without a trace. The reasons are complex, but at the heart of the issue is a glaring lack of resources tailored specifically for this age group. While York and Berks counties each have youth shelters offering beds and case management, Lancaster County has only a street outreach program, leaving many young people with nowhere to turn but the kindness of friends—or the uncertainty of the streets.
On that September day, Mackey met up with several young adults at Culliton Park, exchanging phone numbers and scheduling meetings at the Lancaster Public Library, where they could talk at length about their needs—whether it was finding a job, securing housing, or simply having someone to listen. It’s a small step, but for many, it’s a lifeline.
Recognizing the scale of the problem, Lancaster County’s Homelessness Coalition is joining forces with service providers in neighboring Berks and York counties to create more resources for young adults ages 18 to 25. The effort is buoyed by a $900,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, specifically targeted at addressing youth homelessness. The plan is ambitious: to create a tricounty action board composed of young adults who have experienced homelessness themselves. Their insights will guide the development of new programs and services, ensuring that the solutions are rooted in lived experience rather than distant policymaking.
“We need to rely on people with lived expertise to be able to give their experiences so we can provide better and more holistic programs,” said Deb Jones, executive director of the county Homelessness Coalition, as quoted by LancasterOnline. The approach is a marked shift from traditional top-down models, placing agency and decision-making power in the hands of those who know the challenges best.
Each county will also develop its own youth action board, with Lancaster County leading the way thanks to a board it established two years ago. During that time, board members have traveled across the county to spread awareness about youth homelessness, though they did not comment for this story. The regional partnership will also create a comprehensive map of every resource available to homeless young adults in the three counties. As Kelly Blechertas, York County’s homelessness program coordinator, explained, the map will make it easier for people to quickly find services when traveling across county lines—something that happens often when shelter beds become available or when someone finds a place to stay, even temporarily.
“We don’t want to make all of those decisions,” Blechertas told LancasterOnline. “We want our young adults to come in and give their feedback.” The end result, she said, isn’t set in stone—and that’s intentional. The hope is that by centering the voices of young people, the partnership can create services that are truly responsive to their needs.
For outreach workers like Mackey and her colleague Dericka Scales, a housing services supervisor for Valley Youth House in York, the need for more transitional housing is particularly urgent. Transitional housing serves as a crucial stepping stone between living on the streets and moving into a permanent home. Mackey noted that young adults ages 18 to 24 often lack basic life skills, like how to keep up with rent or manage a household, and need extra support before they can successfully live independently. Scales added that many homeless young adults leave the foster care system as soon as they turn 18, suddenly cut off from the resources that supported them throughout childhood. “They come out of (foster) care and they’re like deer in headlights,” Scales said.
To address this gap, Lancaster County will open its first affordable, transitional housing units dedicated entirely to people leaving the foster care system in 2026. It’s a development that could change lives, offering stability and support at a time when many young people are at their most vulnerable.
The regional partnership also aims to open doors to further opportunities. Elise McCauley, assistant director of the Berks County Homelessness Coalition, noted that with a youth action board in place, each county will soon be eligible for more federal grant opportunities that require a robust youth homelessness system. McCauley acknowledged ongoing uncertainty about federal housing funding, recalling that part of the current project was ended by the Trump administration. She also mentioned that officials had intended to integrate a racial justice aspect into their work, which was initially approved under the Biden administration, but HUD leaders earlier this year asked them to eliminate those plans. Still, McCauley remains optimistic. “We’re in a really good place now,” she said.
While the challenges in Pennsylvania are significant, the situation is echoed in other parts of the world. In Spain’s Basque Country, for example, housing instability is also a pressing concern. Denis Itxaso, the region’s Minister of Housing and Urban Agenda, recently explained to the Argentine Housing Association that “if there hasn’t been a social upheaval over housing, it’s mainly because of the family cushion.” According to ARA, eleven municipalities in the Basque Country have been declared stressed areas due to housing issues, and since October 1, 2025, a reference price index for the province of Guipúzcoa has been in effect, impacting five municipalities—including San Sebastián, one of the most expensive cities in Spain.
Itxaso’s comments highlight a critical difference: in the Basque Country, families often serve as an informal safety net, helping to prevent the kind of visible homelessness seen in places like Lancaster. But as housing costs rise and social support systems are stretched thin, even this cushion may not be enough to stave off crisis in the long term.
Back in Lancaster, the work continues. Outreach workers like Mackey and Scales keep hitting the streets, building trust and offering support where they can. County leaders are betting that by empowering young people to help design the services they need, they can create a more effective, compassionate response to youth homelessness.
It’s a daunting challenge, but as the stories from both Pennsylvania and the Basque Country make clear, innovative partnerships and a willingness to listen—really listen—to those most affected can make all the difference.
