Youth Help Line Running Short Around-The-Clock Hot Line For Teens Needs Money, More Volunteers

They helped teenagers cope with depression, school problems and dating dilemmas.

They even helped prevent teens from committing suicide.

Now, the volunteers who work at Coeur d’Alene’s Youth Help Line are looking for people to help them.

Financial difficulties and low volunteer turnout have left this non-profit organization struggling to stay afloat.

“We are at the point that we’re having to really look at whether we can continue to provide this service,” said Anna Rolphe, chairwoman of the Help Line’s board of directors.

The Youth Help Line is a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week telephone hot line that provides crisis intervention, information and referral to teens and parents in Kootenai County.

The line has been operating since 1986 and averages more than 750 calls per year.

Teens can call the line anonymously, talking to volunteers who answer calls from their own homes.

“A lot of the calls deal with family conflict, teen pregnancy - sometimes it’s relationships and dating,” said Randy Rolphe, a board member. “We provide a listening ear and try to provide some encouragement. A lot of times it’s not something they feel like they can talk to their mom or dad or their other friends about.”

On Thursday, volunteer Donna Runge spent much of the evening on the phone with a teen who had overdosed on caffeine pills. The girl was scared and didn’t want to call the hospital.

Runge, who is also a counselor at North Idaho College, called the poison center for the girl and kept talking to her through the evening to make sure she was all right.

Runge has spent the last seven years volunteering for the Help Line.

“I just can’t give it up because I feel there is a need out there,” she said. “Sometimes people don’t have anybody to turn to.”

During her time as a volunteer, she has successfully helped intervene in three suicide attempts. One teenager wanted to kill himself by running his car off the road. She helped him decide to spend his time with a good friend instead.

Another phone volunteer was able to call the police to help a young girl about to commit suicide. When police arrived the mother didn’t realize her daughter was in trouble. Officers found the girl in the bathroom with a pistol, said Anna Rolphe.

About 80 percent of the Help Line’s budget comes from the United Way - a money source that has gone down by more than half.

Last year the organization received $13,000 from United Way. But this year it received only $5,000 after the number of calls dropped somewhat, Randy Rolphe said.

There are now only 14 phone volunteers - some spending up to 12 hours on a shift.

“If the community feels that this is a valuable service to our teens, we’re looking for more volunteers to staff our phones and we’re looking for contributions in funding to help us sustain this service,” Randy Rolphe said.

“If each of us adults takes just a few minutes to help our youth then we’ve done a good service in our life,” Runge said.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Help Teens needing someone to talk to can call the Youth Help Line at 765-TEEN. Anyone wanting to be a phone volunteer can call 664-3178. Donations can be sent to the Help Line at P.O. Box 1232, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814. The organization also is looking for a small office space that can be donated.