BURIEN, Wash. — A King County nonprofit that helps make outdoor activities more accessible to youth in the area is struggling to find space to store all its gear.
Youth Experiential Training Institute, or Y.E.T.I., is a south King County nonprofit that hopes to inspire youth to enjoy the outdoors.
"Sometimes it's financial, sometimes it's transportation, equipment, maybe your family background. Maybe they hadn't done these things before. So, that's what we aim to do at Y.E.T.I. is really design all our programs to break down those barriers," said Y.E.T.I. Executive Director David Dunphy. "All our programs are free, or sliding scale."
Activities the nonprofit hosts includes kayaking, rock climbing, hiking, mountain biking, and snowshoeing.
A recent report on youth activity in King County found 19% of young people got the CDC-recommended amount of physical activity. Y.E.T.I. takes children on the trail, to the mountains, and on the water to try to remedy that.
But these activities require a lot of gear, including mountain bikes and a passenger van.
Previously, a property owner offered up free space in a lot they owned. But the space they used is now getting sold. Now, the nonprofit is scrambling to find a place to store all that gear.
"We're looking for space for a 40-foot shipping container, a 12 passenger van, and mountain bikes we use. So, it's about four parking stalls of space that needs to be secure," Dunphy said.
Anyone able to help can contact Y.E.T.I. through their website. You can also donate to help make their programs possible.