Program Offers Free Calls Home for Runaways
A year-long pilot program was launched in the Los Angeles area Tuesday to provide free telephone calls home to thousands of young people who have run away or have been ordered out of their homes.
The Travelers Aid Society and American Telephone & Telegraph Co. jointly announced the plan for young people up to the age of 23. Organizers estimated that 10,000 runaways live on the streets in the area and that total probably doubles during summer months.
Free calls will be offered at aid society offices at the Teen Canteen in Hollywood, Los Angeles International and Ontario airports, in downtown Los Angeles and in Garden Grove and Long Beach. AT&T; will pay for all the calls.
If the program works locally, it may be expanded to other large cities, organizers said.
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