Welcome

Youth Crisis Center is a remarkable success story about changed lives and reunited families.  In 1974, Gwen Yates, former Jacksonville City Councilwoman, founded YCC as Florida's first runaway youth shelter.  YCC soon emerged as Florida's busiest runaway program, and it is now one of the busiest in the country, housing more than 1,600 youth each year. In 1975, the CBS crew of 60 Minutes identified our organization as an exemplary program worthy of being highlighted on their Sunday evening broadcast.

Since then, YCC has been featured on Sunday Morning with Charles Kuralt, SOS Secrets of Survival with Bill Cosby, Wards of the Street [a nationally-syndicated documentary], three New York TimesUSA Today articles and in Reader's Digest.

The reason we draw so much national media attention is because we are consistently rated as one of the best non-profit organizations in the nation.  But our personal satisfaction is in the thousands of young lives we've gotten on the right track.  Over 35,000 kids have come through our doors, 88% of whom were successfully reunited with their families, and after one year 94% of them are still home and attending school.  That's a remarkable track record by anyone's standard.

I am proud of the hard work by YCC's professional staff as they help children and families in crisis.  I invite all concerned citizens to contact us to see our program, and to learn more about ways to join with us in salvaging young lives.

God Bless,

Tom Patania