Youth Eastside Services’ mission is as critical for at-risk youth today as it was 45 years ago, says founding member Dr. Lee Vincent, who on Nov. 1 thanked the King County communities who continue to support its cause.

YES started out in Bellevue in 1968 after five couples decided to do something about the growing problem of drug and alcohol abuse at that time. Not only were the youth in Bellevue partying with drugs and alcohol, Vincent said, but they were also misinformed and in need of education.

Vincent remembers and fondly tells the story of how pharmacist and fellow founding member Phil Nudelman called him 45 years ago about a teen seeking advice about injecting himself with peanut butter as a way to get high.

With the help of Bellevue Community College and the police chief at the time, YES started out in the basement of the First Congregational Church in Lake Hills first as Heads Up, which dealt with the problem of marijuana use.

“It evolved very quickly,” said Vincent, and soon volunteers were being sent out into the community to deal with youths having bad trips. “Mostly LSD, they had some really bad experiences.”

YES grew out of the church and several locations after that, and continues to grow to this day. It opened its new Bellevue location on Northeast Eighth Street in the Crossroads area in 2008 using $10.8 million in community funding. YES also has expanded in King County to include offices in Kirkland and Redmond.

The nonprofit serves more than 4,500 clients every year and sees up to 250 new clients in any given month, said Cami Keyes, YES spokeswoman. With 18 counselors and 30 interns, YES provides numerous programs focused on teen mental health and substance abuse, which Vincent said long ago was perceived as connected. There are also programs to assist teens struggling with sexual identity and young mothers with ensuring proper childhood development.

“Everybody gets the help they need regardless of a parent’s ability to pay,” Keyes said. “We started as a community organization and we are still supported by the community to this day.”

YES is on track to raise $1.2 million in donations for operations. However, that represents just one-third of its annual expenses. Since the recession in 2008, the nonprofit has become more self-sufficient as local governments have had to tighten their budgets.

“We’ve had some extremely fine, very generous people who have made this possible,” said Vincent of YES’s longevity, “and we will be forever thankful to them.”

Vincent delivered his message of thanks and continued need for YES services during the organization’s founders day celebration on Nov. 1 at the nonprofit’s Bellevue location. He was joined by city representatives from Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond, King County Councilor Jane Hague, former clients telling their stories and successes and YES Executive Director Patti Skelton-McGougan.

“It’s really hard to go back and look at what would have happened to these teens had this organization not existed,” said Skelton-McGougan.

Alisa Clark came to YES 17 years ago, and overcame five years of sexual abuse that ended with her father’s suicide, she told the Friday gathering. Her mother and siblings followed suit, and Clark graduated from college in 2006 and now runs her own business. Her entire family benefitted from the aid it received from YES.

“As you can see from our own firsthand experience, YES works,” Clark said. “YES is more than just a resource, it’s a life source.”