Sexual and Gender Minority Youth Resource Center (SMYRC)
SMYRC is an Oregon based non-profit resource center for youth who identify as LGBTQQ. The SMYRC resource center strives to provide safety and support for youth through empowerment, community building, education and direct services.
SMYRC is the only drop-in resource center for sexual minority youth in Oregon. SMYRC provides safe space and developmentally appropriate programming to other youth organization for community education and outreach. SMYRC programs align with youth development benchmarks like, increased academic success, reducing poverty, and preventing juvenile crime.
National research shows that sexual minority youth are at higher risk of suicide, alcohol use, and drug use than their heterosexual peers. They are also more likely to experience social and community isolation as a result of homophobia. LGBTQQ youth are more likely to thrive when participating in organized, adult supervised activities, and therefore more likely to succeed in their education, and lead happy, healthy, contributing lives. (SMYRC)