Covenant House''s NINELINE Commemorates 20 Years， Helping 3，785，930 Troubled Children &； Teens

　　NEW YORK, Oct. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- For 20 years, NINELINE has been helping children who have nowhere else to turn. Annually, over 500,000 troubled children and teens across the US, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and Guam call Covenant House''s NINELINE (1-800-999-9999) seeking help with problems including abuse, suicide, drugs & alcohol, running away, family issues, basic needs and relationships. Over 50,000 are crisis calls.

    According to Covenant House International President Sister Tricia Cruise, S.C., "When kids call NINELINE, we are often their only lifeline and their last chance for help. In the past 20 years, we helped 3,785,930 callers providing them with crisis intervention, counseling support, information or referring them to shelters and local agencies." Covenant House is the largest privately funded agency in the Americas providing services to homeless kids.

    "When kids call us with their heartbreaking problems, we try to give them as much care and love as is possible in a telephone call," says Patricia Connors, a trained social worker who started NINELINE on September 29, 1987.

    "Some kids would open up right away. Sometimes it would take many calls before they would feel safe enough to tell us their problems. Once they did, we''d keep them on the line and get them immediate help by conferencing in agencies in their local communities," explains Connors. The basic principles and goals of NINELINE continue today, to provide callers with immediate care, help and support by highly trained counselors.

    Connors, now senior vice president of Human Resources, says building up the database of local organizations was challenging, but the best way NINELINE could help callers. Today Covenant House has over 30,000 local service agencies in its database.

    "Another challenge was giving kids a number they could remember, so we got 1-800-999-9999," recalls Connors. She had an internal contest to name the hotline. The choice became evident when three staff members independently suggested NINELINE.

    According to current director Gil Ortiz, NINELINE has expanded helping children, teens, parents and caregivers via www.nineline.org. The Web site enables anyone needing help to email questions to NINELINE crisis counselors, post questions via the NINELINE forum, search NINELINE''s database of 30,000 local service agencies, and download information on topics critical to today''s youth.

    NINELINE is multilingual, responding in English, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Polish and all languages with the assistance of interpreters. NINELINE also has a TTY line (800-999-9915) for the hearing impaired. There are approximately 36 staff members who work in shifts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

    "We also answer calls on Life Line, a suicide hotline, as well as hotlines for gang violence, domestic violence and victims of human trafficking," adds Ortiz, who secured national certification for NINELINE by the American Association of Suicidology, a national association of hotlines and crisis centers, and a contract with the Federal Department of Health and Human Services to operate a national hotline for victims of human trafficking.

    "NINELINE offers the most comprehensive services to callers," explains Ortiz. "We specialize in crisis intervention and connecting callers with agencies in their communities, but our staff can offer counseling on the phone as well. It''s very rewarding work changing the lives of children for the better."

    Covenant House will commemorate the 20th Anniversary of NINELINE on October 23 at 2 p.m. at its 5 Penn Plaza location in New York City. Sr. Tricia will present certificates of recognition to NINELINE counselors. Tours of the NINELINE call center will be conducted. Media are invited.

    Source: Covenant House International