Y AGENCIES JOIN EFFORTS TO OPERATE TEEN SPOT.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

Modestly furnished with some game tables, a few computers and tables here and there, the upstairs level of the YWCA has been transformed into an afterschool haven for young people - a place, in their words, to hang and chill.

Called Your House, the center opened without much fanfare in early September to fulfill a longtime community goal to give residents 12 to 18 years old a one-stop facility for recreation and social services. Children younger than 12 also visit a children's room at the center, 735 Lexington Drive, Glendale.

The center's opening celebration is expected to take place sometime before Christmas.

``We are calling it Your House because we want this to be the teen- agers' place,'' said Joan Thirkettle, director of community services, who oversees the center.

``Youth in Glendale have asked for a place where they can be, whether to hang out with friends, recreate or get social services a teen may need.''

A collaborative project of the YMCA and the YWCA, the center is open from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and serves as the umbrella site for programs for adolescents and teen-agers, such as Project Yes, and Youth and Government.

New programs are being planned for the center, such as an emergency shelter for runaway teens and a 12-step program for young alcoholics to get sober.

Planners hope that the emergency shelter for as many as eight teens at a time, served by a professional staff, will be operating in a year or two so that runaways would not have to be referred to an outside agency.

``Sometimes families simply need timeout from each other,'' said Thirkettle, who noted that about 400 young people in the city are abused or run away each year.

For now, teen center staff are working to launch Project Safe Place to provide sites throughout the city where youths can seek immediate assistance. Within the next few months, large yellow signs designating safe places would be posted at fire stations, medical centers and other selected sites.

When youngsters walk in for help, staff of the safe places would contact teen center volunteers to get the help that is needed. As part of the program, a 24-hour hotline would be established.

Teen center officials plan to advertise the program by putting information on backpack zipper pullers and making presentations at school assemblies.

``To get help fast is really the mission of Project Safe Place,'' Thirkettle said. ``It's meant to be a safety net for young people.''

On a recent afternoon, while one group of girls 9 and 10 years old practiced their hip hop moves in front of a wall mirror, a second group was painting a patriotic banner, and another group was playing pingpong - all under the supervision of center staff.

``I like (coming) because there is always something to do,'' said 10- year-old Jennifer Arevalo. ``I came here to get out of the house. I am always watching television.''

Teen center staffers Sako Sehakian, 20, and Narine Hartonian, 18, play with the youngsters, help them with their homework and frequently lend a sympathetic ear to their problems.

Slow dancing, dating etiquette and pingpong are just a few of the things that a group of teen-age boys said they have learned from Sehakian, who has experience working with children in summer camps.

``He is our mentor. We look up to Sako,'' said 13-year-old Edward Bagdasayan. ``He teaches us a lot of stuff. He is going to teach us how to play billiards, too.''

Sehakian said the secret to his success is bringing himself to young people's level of thinking.

``I kind of set my mind to their level. Once you get the common understanding, they connect with you,'' he said. ``I want them to feel comfortable just as they would if I was one of their friends.''

Slowly word is getting out about the teen center. Staffers say they see a few new faces at a time.

As more funding comes in, Thirkettle said there will be more furniture, renovations to create a homelike setting and more computers and decorations on the walls.

``Eventually, we will have some artwork on the wall. Little by little, it will look like a young people's place,'' she said.

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Photo:

Narine Hartonian, 18, helps Alex Manukian, 8, with homework in the children's room at Your House teen center, 735 Lexington Drive, in Glendale.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer