History:
Center Lane, a program of Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS) is an innovative community center for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender adolescents ages 14-21 living in and around Westchester County, New York. As the only service provider in the county that targets LGBT youth, Center Lane has become a valuable resource in Westchester. Since it’s inception in 1995, Center Lane has provided social support for LGBT youth that experience isolation in their communities due to the existence of homophobia and heterosexism.
Over 200 young people come to Center Lane services each year, and they come from every town and municipality in Westchester County. The youth that participate in the Center Lane program are as diverse as the county in which they live. Center Lane is exceptional in that it brings together young people from every racial, ethnic, religious, and economic background. The common need to meet others who are lgbt is strong enough to bring youth together who might never meet under other circumstances. The result is a respectful, multicultural community of friends who support and empower each other through the challenges of adolescence.
Center Lane opened in July of 1995. Dr. Amy Kohn, an out-lesbian executive who worked at Westchester Jewish Community Services, was the program’s founder. Because there was little support for lgbt youth when she was growing up, Dr. Kohn had a dream of creating a place for lesbian and gay youth to meet others and to feel safe and supported for who they are. In the summer of 1995, a handful of brave lgbt youth came to Center Lane for support. They were part of the first weekly support groups at Center Lane. In 1996, Center Lane hosted Westchester’s first Gay Prom. It was held at the YWCA and attended by a dozen or so young people.
Today, Center Lane serves a multitude of youth each week—both at the main hub in White Plains and at the new satellite Center in Yonkers, and the Gay Prom” each June brings over 200 youth. With so much growth and development, the focus of the program has evolved from it’s base out into the many communities of Westchester County. Though it continues to provide a safe haven for lgbt youth who need a place to go, the program also works to support lgbt youth and their allies in their own communities. To this end, Center Lane provides consultation and workshops throughout high schools in the county. Center Lane also hosts a monthly GSA Network meeting where student leaders from over 20 high schools in Westchester get support and energy to make their communities more accepting and embracing of their lgbt young people. The result is that many young people can now feel safe and comfortable with regard to their sexual orientation in their own communities.
