Savannah Youth Emergency Shelter Receives $50,000 Donation

PRLog (Press Release) - Dec. 14, 2012 - (SAVANNAH, GA) Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter, a temporary shelter and outreach service that serves youth from Savannah and the surrounding area, has received a $50,000 donation from the Joseph & Mary Dobransky Foundation. Linda K. Hilts, Park Place Outreach’s executive director, said the funds will enable the shelter to provide more than 250 nights of care for an individual or 1,800 hours of counseling.

“Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter is extraordinarily grateful for this very generous donation,” Hilts said. “The gift comes at a very critical time for our organization. As a nonprofit, we are seeing government funding sources drying up, and many of our donors are struggling with the recession.”

In 2009, the Joseph & Mary Dobransky Foundation donated $50,000 for the completion of the Dobransky Outreach Center, which is located on the lower level of Park Place Outreach’s facility at 514 E. Henry St. The center serves as a haven for youth seeking a safe after-school place to do their homework and relax.

Joseph (Joe) Dobransky, a member of the Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter Board of Directors, is a retired regional vice president for UPS. He served in the United States Navy after graduating from high school, then later began working as a driver for UPS. Over the years, he worked his way up the ranks of the company, serving in key positions in Ohio, Illinois, New Jersey and Texas.

Today, Dobransky and his wife, Mary, call Savannah home, dedicating their time to charitable organizations such as Park Place Outreach and America’s Second Harvest food bank. Mary is also involved in P.E.O (Philanthropic Educational Organization), an organization that promotes educational opportunities for women. The Dobranskys have been married for 58 years and have six children, 15 grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren, with two more on the way.

“Park Place Outreach is a place where they really help young people find the path of life,” Joe Dobransky said. “I like to see children advance. I believe the future of the country is in our hands, and the way to do it is to educate young people.”

About Park Place Outreach, Inc.
Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter provides support for troubled children and teens from Savannah and the surrounding area. The shelter is open 24 hours a day to youth in crisis, adolescents who are homeless, young people who have been abused, runaway youth, or those who may be contemplating how to run away. Opened in 1984 as Marshlands Foundation, Inc. (dba the Savannah Runaway Home), Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter provides counseling and other services to boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 17. The organization’s goal is to keep kids off the street and reunify families whenever possible.

Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter is an equal opportunity provider and employer. This program is supported in part by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families, USDA Breakfast/Lunch Program, Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Georgia Department of Human Services, City of Savannah, United Way, FEMA and other community resources. For more information, please visit http://parkplaceyes.org or search for “Park Place Outreach” on Facebook. An informational video about Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter is available at YouTube by searching for “Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter.”

For more information, contact:
Linda Hilts, Executive Director
Park Place Outreach – Youth Emergency Shelter
912-234-4048
hiltssrh@aol.com
http://parkplaceyes.org
Facebook: Search for “Park Place Outreach”

For media inquires, contact:
Marjorie Young
CarriageTrade PR
912-844-9990
marjorie@carriagetradepr.com

Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/12043401/1