The Abel Maldonado Youth Center is now officially a safe place for kids who are in danger.
Santa Maria is the only Central Coast city to have a designated safe place and youth center staff is now trained in crisis intervention.
They have undergone 8 to 12 hours of training in comforting a child in need and contacting law enforcement.
"We really just want Santa Maria to continue to be a safe place for kids by providing resources to these youth to having centers like this highlighted so kids know that we care about them and we want them to be safe in Santa Maria," said Dennis Smitherman, City of Santa Maria Recreation Services Manager.
If it's after hours, kids can text their location and the word 'safe' to 4Help (44357).
