Last Updated on December 7, 2023, 11:29 AM | Published: December 7, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY — Sisu Youth Services hosted a grand opening and open house of their new campus Wednesday near NW 30th and Penn.
Sisu is an organization dedicated to supporting unhoused youth aged 15 to 25. Since 2017, they have been operating from a shelter space in the basement of the Church of the Open Arms. However, they recently moved into a place of their own, allowing them to better meet the needs of those seeking their services.
On a sunny December morning, community leaders, Sisu employees and clients, and community members gathered around and officially opened Sisu’s new space.
Sisu Executive Director Rachel Bradley was one of many speakers at the grand opening, and she discussed the emotional reaction many of the Sisu staff members had to the new space and the direct impact they’ve already seen. Bradley said they are already seeing between 30 and 40 young people use Sisu’s services in their new building every day.
“We’ve established a new space for our youth to belong and plan for their tomorrows and a space where we’re able to increase the number of youth we serve every single day,” Bradley said. “It’s really impactful just to see what we’re going to make happen and to see those things come to fruition.”
IMG 1380 – Sisu Executive Director Rachel Bradley addresses the crowd at SISU’s grand opening
This project has been in the works for the past 2 years. The renovation of the new building cost approximately 2.5 million dollars and has expanded both their drop-in center and shelter capacity.
“Our ability to take care of these young folks and feed them has increased, and we’re just very very excited,” Aaron Wilder, Development Director at Sisu, said. “We’ve been operating for five and a half years out of the basement of the Church of the Open Arms, and that’s been a lovely home, but we’re just so excited to have our own place.”
SISU’s new space and their ongoing work
Sisu’s previous space housed 16 beds for emergency overnight shelter, whereas this new space is able to house 20 beds with the ability to sleep another 10 in the drop-in center. The new building also includes a 24-hour resource center.
The drop-in shelter provides access to food, a full kitchen, clothing, showers, laundry services, and hygiene items. Youth in need also have access to Sisu’s case management services, which connects them to an adult who can help them navigate out of homelessness.
While at the Church of Open Arms, Sisu officials grew their resource center from being open three hours a day to 23 hours a day last December. Now, they’re open 24 hours a day with even more resources available.
Sisu welcomes youth from diverse backgrounds as long as they fall within the age range to receive their services. They serve a high percentage of 2SLGBTQIA+ youth experiencing homelessness, which is disproportionately high compared to the population. Sisu has made LGBTQIA+ inclusion a cornerstone of their organization since 2018 and continues to prioritize it as they move to a new campus. In 2022, over half of the youth served by Sisu identified as LGBTQIA+.
Sisu follows a housing-first, low-barrier approach and customizes its services for each client. They prioritize urgent needs like medical support and then help youth achieve their individual goals, such as finding their own apartment, completing school, or starting a job.
Funding the new space
Sisu’s new space and ongoing programming was primarily made possible by grant funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
In July 2022, Sisu was granted $1 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Program. The grant aims to provide support to low-income individuals by developing urban communities with housing and economic opportunities. The funding was awarded through an application process with the Citizens Committee for Community Development after being given to Oklahoma City by HUD. These funds were used to create Sisu’s new space.
One month later, The City of Oklahoma City was awarded over $3 million in community funding by HUD to participate in the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP). Through this, Sisu received $990,000 annually through 2023 for youth-focused projects and ongoing programming.
Mayor David Holt discussed the importance of block grant funding at the grand opening, stating that this project is a great example of use of these funds.
“This commitment you see today is not the vision of any one person,” Holt said. “It’s the vision of a consensus of this city government and this community at large that we represent, that homelessness and our youth and inclusivity and empathy are all priorities that we are going to put at the top of our list.”
The new space is just phase one of Sisu’s efforts. Erika Warren, the Capital Campaign Committee Chair, spoke at the grand opening and discussed the next phase of the campaign.
“Still, with the expanded capacity this building will provide, we know the need persits, and we know this is not the end of the work,” Warren said.
Sisu also owns the two lots next door to the new space, and they have begun the process of funding the expansion of a complete campus to sit on that property including a small medical clinic, a classroom area, and an area for partner agencies like DHS, Northcare, VarietyCare, or the county health department. There are also plans to expand SISU’s growing case management team and add micro-efficiency apartments.
As the community rallies around the new building as a symbol of the first phase of Sisu’s development, officials look forward to continued growth, continuing to put the needs of Oklahoma City’s unhoused youth at the forefront.
Zoe Travers has spent her career covering local musicians, artists, politicians, and everyday folks. She is also Oklahoma City’s most enthusiastic connoisseur of cheese danishes.
