A Kitsap County non-profit has found a way to harness teens’ favorite habit - texting - and use it to help save lives.
The Coffee Oasis, a faith-based organization that serves homeless youths, started a crisis texting line earlier this year.
Trained volunteers are available around the clock, responding to messages.
“They just know that there are people here that will help them,” said Dave Secrest, a therapist with Coffee Oasis.
He recalled a case where a young woman was in the woods, ready to take her life when she tapped out a message to the crisis line.
“She really was at a place of feeling like there was no other choice, and for her and her particular situation, being able to talk to somebody meant the world to her,” Secrest said.
The woman is now in counseling, he said.
“In some desperate moment, she was asking for, is there hope?” Secrest said.
An earlier Coffee Oasis crisis phone line got very few calls. It wasn't until they switched over to texting that teens started speaking up.
“You can't really expect a kid who is hanging out with friends or parents or whatever it is to excuse themselves to make a phone call when they're in crisis. It’s easier for them to text somebody,” said Joshua Goss, crisis intervention team program manager for Coffee Oasis.
When kids return to class in a few weeks, they'll see cards with the crisis number in Kitsap County schools. The Coffee Oasis says they are a crucial reminder that someone is listening.
“One student saw it in a bathroom and she texted in with us. She was feeling hopeless, and we were able to connect through that text and help her,” Goss said.
To reach the 24/7 teen crisis line in Kitsap County, text “CoffeeOasis” to 360-377-5560.
In Seattle - King County and the rest of the state, teens can call or text TeenLink at 866-833-6546.
Adults in Seattle-King County can call the Crisis Connections 24-hour crisis line at 866-427-4747.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 800-273-8255.
