Recreation helps homeless teens rise above it all

LITTLE DELL RESERVOIR, Parleys Canyon — Strapped into a rock-climbing harness in Utah's rocky mountains, 15-year-old Quaton James starts to sweat. His heart starts pounding and his lungs start seizing up. He's weak-kneed, wheezy and wondering, "Why did I want to do this again?"

"I don't want to be limited by my fear of heights," he said Friday, standing on the banks of Little Dell Reservoir, with the wind riffling through his thick, black hair. "I have to face that fear. I have to push past it. Then, when I beat it, I really feel like I've accomplished something."

James has called on that courage more than a few times this summer. As a participant in Salt Lake Community Action 's newly implemented Faces of Youth program, an arts and recreation summer camp for Utah's homeless teens, he's taken on a number of fearsome firsts — first time hula hooping with the boys, first time falling out of canoe, first time break dancing in front of a crowd. And because he's taken risks, he said, "I've been changed."

The oldest of six children, the teen has shouldered more than a few adult-sized problems in his life. He held his family together as a sibling dealt with chronic illness that eventually led to the amputation of his feet. He set aside his own pain to help his mother work through depression after his father was found drunk and frozen to death in a Walmart parking lot. He made it his mission to keep spirits high as the family, now homeless and destitute, tried to start over.

Cassidy DuHadway, Salt Lake Community Action's youth development program coordinator, developed Faces of Youth hoping to help teens like James rise above their circumstances. The camp, which will continue in the fall as an after-school mentoring program, focuses on teaching skills like teamwork, leadership and social skills.

"These kids are dealing with huge life stressors. Their homes are inconsistent. They don't always have food. They've lost all their friends because their lives have changed so drastically. There's nothing they can count on," DuHadway said. "This program gives them a safe place to try new things and learn from their experiences."

Tara DeWitt, who led the teens through the ups and downs of their summer adventures, believes arts and recreation may keep teens off of drugs and out of gangs. By showing teens "another way," she hopes the program will help to end the cycle of poverty and homelessness, she said.

"These kids don't have access to a lot of opportunity," DeWitt said. "We're not going to fix all of Salt Lake City, but I feel like we can help at least a few at-risk kids to get out, doing positive things with their time."

James doesn't have any deep thoughts to share about poverty; he's a solid rock, rarely complaining about his lot in life. He does credit Faces of Youth with introducing him to a slew of new friends, however, and helping him to reach outside of himself and his own problems.

It's been nice, he said, fresh off his first-ever canoe ride Friday, to have a diversion from his "hectic life." For just a moment Friday, it appeared as if the boy, dripping wet from a water fight on the lake, didn't have a care in the world.

"Some things in my life have been hard, but I've realized I've got to go on with my life," he said. "It's like my mom says, 'You only live one time.' "

e-mail: estuart@desnews.com