Teens in a city-funded youth violence prevention program are helping out the homeless during a time of year when people living on the streets are especially vulnerable.
They passed out hats and socks in front of the Union Gospel Mission in downtown Seattle, Tuesday.
The goal is to keep the teens, who are in the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, out of the juvenile justice system and off the streets by counseling them and helping mold them into responsible young adults.
"To have people come down and drop off things or donate things to us like this, it means everything to us," said Katherine Mattern, who is homeless.
Jahvanni Niko-Semo passed out cupcakes and had an opportunity to observe, if only for a few hours, what life is like on the streets.
"Honestly I just want to give back to the community, and seeing all the people coming by and getting this stuff, it just makes me happy because I don't want to see people homeless, I just want to help with the homeless," he said.
They get to see what difference a hot cup of cocoa or a new pair of gloves can make in the life of someone who fell on hard times or made poor decisions.
"It's wonderful, I mean we need more people out here like this," said Mattern.
Organizers hope this experience, now in its second year, will empower the teens to do more good in their community and appreciate what they have.
