PITTSBURGH — Community members and students stood outside the City-County building in Pittsburgh to bring awareness to the growing number of homeless kids in Allegheny County.
Members of the Homeless Children Education Fund (HCEF) and 150 community members held drawings made by homeless kids that represent who they dream of being when they grow up during a silent demonstration on Tuesday.
“When a child doesn’t have security, they stay in fight or flight mode, so education is not a priority. What we know is that education is the number one intervention to break the cycle of homelessness,” AJ Jefferson, HCEF president and CEO said.
The event was kicked of HCEF’s fourth YOU CAN campaign, a month-long effort to raise awareness and support homeless children.
There are over 3,600 homeless kids in Allegheny County and almost 55,000 across Pennsylvania.
“What we witnessed today was a powerful demonstration and kick-off to our month-long YOU CAN campaign,” said Jefferson. “This campaign allows HCEF to raise additional dollars to expand the critical programming and services for our students.”
Speakers at the event included County Executive Sara Innamorato, Mayor Ed Gainey, HCEF scholarship winner Xavier Littlejohn, and Divya Thirumala, a high school volunteer and founder of the STEM Explorers Initiative. Each speaker highlighted the importance of supporting educational opportunities for homeless youth.
“As the sole nonprofit committed to supporting the educational needs of these students, we rely on strategic partnerships to help combat youth homelessness in our region. We are also deeply grateful to our local and state elected officials for their continued support and advocacy on behalf of these students. We must continue conversations on creating equity through education, reducing the stigma surrounding youth homelessness and advocating for systemic change so that students experiencing homelessness or housing instability can leverage their education to flourish as productive, empowered adults,” Jefferson said.
Governor Shapiro proclaimed October 2025 as Homeless Children’s Awareness Month across Pennsylvania and County Executive Innamorato did the same for Allegheny County.
“Allegheny County is proud to be home to such an important and supportive organization,” Innamorato said.
The YOU CAN campaign aims to drive the community to donate, refer children in need and advocate for students experiencing homelessness. HCEF plans to host several events throughout October and November.
Interested participants are asked to register in advance.
Click here for more information on the Homeless Children’s Education Fund.
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