Rochester to be in-person site for Waypoint's 2023 SleepOut in March

Staff reports 7:02 a.m.


Rochester to be in-person site for Waypoint's 2023 SleepOut in March

Rochester's youth homelessness drop-in center located on Wallace Street (Courtesy photo)

ROCHESTER - Registration is now open for the 9th annual Waypoint SleepOut, scheduled for March 24.

The SleepOut is a night spent out in the cold to raise community consciousness about youth homelessness and to raise funds for services that fulfill critical needs. To register, go to www.waypointnh.org.

This year's event will be hybrid; registered participants may opt to sleep out (or in) at a place of their choosing, or, they may join in one of the Waypoint-hosted, in-person gatherings in downtown Manchester and Rochester.
Currently, 1 in 10 young adults ages 18 to 25, and 1 in 30 adolescents, ages 13 to 17, endures some form of homelessness in America within a 12-month period, according to the latest report by Chapin Hall - University of Chicago. Estimates show that between 14,000 and 15,000 youth are likely to experience some form of homelessness or housing insecurity in New Hampshire this year. Last year, Waypoint had nearly 1,500 contacts with youth who were experiencing homelessness in the Granite State.

In New Hampshire, Waypoint is the sole provider of comprehensive services for youth experiencing homelessness. The nonprofit provides survival aid/basic needs relief and contributes to long-term stability and self-sufficiency through educational advocacy, job and life skills training, housing, access to mental health and addiction treatment services, and more.
In 2022, Waypoint expanded its services throughout the state with new youth resource centers in Rochester and Manchester, community-based outreach services in Concord, and an overnight emergency shelter in Manchester.

Waypoint hopes that through community collaborations, public awareness and advocacy, the expansion will create a greater social safety net for more youth, and effectively get another step closer to ending youth homelessness in New Hampshire.

To register, donate, or get further information about SleepOut 2023, visit www.waypointnh.org/sleepout2023.

The Waypoint SleepOut 2023 is sponsored in part by PROCON, Bank of America, and Rock 101/iHeart Radio.