Homeless Youth Holiday Party Saturday In Loudoun County

LEESBURG, VA — This is one of those things a lot of folks might not think about this time of the year, with thoughts focused on the holiday season, office parties, Christmas galas and so on. Some people, on the other hand, simply are focused on getting out of the cold and worried about not having a roof over their heads. Merry Christmas? Not so much.

We're talking, of course, about the homeless — especially homeless youths. Mobile Hope, a non-profit organization based in Leesburg committed to providing services to at-risk or homeless young people ages 25 and younger in Loudoun County, is taking steps to make the season a bit more cheerful.

It's doing so with its annual holiday party 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at the Douglass Community Center, 405 East Market Street. It'll feature a visit from Santa Claus, who will be giving gifts and other special treats to "homeless, precariously housed and other struggling and invisible Loudoun youth." There also will be a variety of interactive season-themed activities. More than 500 area kids and their families are expected to be on hand.

According to Loudoun County's annual Point-in-Time Count, which identifies people who are considered "literally homeless" under a strict federal definition, as reported by Loudoun Now, in 2016 the count had 134 people without housing.

Mobile Hope was founded by Donna Fortier in 2011 as part of Inova Loudoun Hospital's Mobile Health program. She formed its own entity, separate of the hospital, in September 2014 "to focus solely on this overlooked population."

Loudoun County has a homeless prevention program that, among other things, assists those who have gone to court for eviction or are at imminent risk of becoming homeless. The county also operates emergency homeless shelters.

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