Denise Ross

BS in Psychology in Applied Behavior Analysis (alumna)

Denise Ross volunteers with National Runaway Hotline as a runaway counselor. Denise shared that she had a family friend who ran away when she was 15 years old, and Denise wanted the girl's family to know she was ok. “At the runaway hotline we do not tell parents any details other than the message from the child and that they are safe, if that is the case.

The kids I have talked to have run away for an array of reasons, from child abuse to they just didn’t get along with their parents. There are different ways to help these kids. The one that is in the front of my mind is a girl who was pregnant had run away because her parents wouldn’t let her see the baby's father. She called weekly so we could call her parents and let them know she was ok. I never violated her trust and she got to a state that allowed her at age 16 with a baby to live as an adult.

We are able to offer services in these critical times to these kids; and let's face it, in today’s world these kids are not safe on the street either."