ROOTS Young Adult Shelter

ROOTS Young Adult Shelter provides safe emergency shelter to young adults (age 18-25) in Seattle's University District. We deliver critical services to young adults experiencing homelessness and other low-income persons, advocate for policies that foster dignity and long-term solutions, and work toward building community partnerships.

In the 1980's, University Youth Shelter became an inspiring example of the power of community. Students, parents, and other citizens of the University District refused to close their eyes to the tragic reality of youth homelessness, and created an ad-hoc shelter, run solely by volunteers at five different church sites. As volunteers got to know the young people from the streets, it became clear that UYS was offering more than a safe place to sleep. Youth were also finding security and the type of caring relationships that are so essential to human development. ROOTS, a city-funded program, merged with University Youth Shelter, eventually growing to seven nights a week of shelter for 18- to 25-year-olds, yet we retain our grassroots style as a largely volunteer, community response to the growing population of not housed young people.

For more information on ROOTS (Rising Out Of The Shadows), please visit our new website: www.rootsinfo.org.

ROOTS is the largest shelter for young adults experiencing homelessness in Washington state. We aim to have at least one volunteer for every 3 guests, every night of the week.  Our volunteers are one of the most important components of the social services we provide, because the meaningful connections that are made with guests can make a greater impact than any other service we offer. Homelessness is often incredibly isolating, and the consistent human connection that occurs within our shelter space tends to positively influence other areas of our guests’ lives.

Services that we offer include:

• Safe emergency overnight shelter to young adults, ages 18-25
• Hot dinners and breakfasts
• Laundry and showers
• On-site case management and referral to other support and transitional services
• Supportive and nurturing relationships between staff, volunteers, and guests
• Volunteer training and support

ROOTS also hosts a weekly meal program known as Friday Feast, which has been in continuous operation since 1999. Friday Feast provides a restaurant-quality meal every Friday at 5:30 PM to between 150 and 200 homeless and low-income individuals of all ages. Real Change has called Friday Feast "The best of all soup kitchen meals."