"It's a safe place where people can reach out and share their feelings and be heard and not worry about being judged by the person on the other end," said Cailey Crusemire, program supervisor, when describing the newly established Chester County Teen Talk Line. "We can talk about anything they want to talk about."

Teen Talk Line, targeting 12- to 18-year-olds, became available in April to take calls and texts to support young people who are feeling overwhelmed, stressed, sad, isolated or confused. Callers can remain anonymous, and all calls are confidential. In November, the hours expanded, and the line is now open seven days a week from 3 to 7 p.m.

"Our volume is predominantly in text," reported Kerri Hoogenhuis, assistant director. "Occasionally a teen will reach out by phone, but that is rare."

Teen Talk Line staff members would like to see the number of callers increase. "So many don't know about it, but there is such a need for teen services," said Crusemire. "Once they do know, it's also making sure that it's not a scary place for them to reach out."

"We just want to let them know that it is a place just to talk - not when you are in crisis," said Hoogenhuis. "People hesitate to reach out because they think their problem is not big enough. But they can reach out about anything, even to talk about their day."

"A lot of (the calls and texts) seem to be about friend problems, people at school, problems with parents and feeling lonely or isolated," Crusemire added. "Some of them just want to vent about (feeling) alone. Some people reach out to say hello."

Calls or texts from teens who are in crisis are referred to the Valley Creek Crisis Center, which responds to mental health emergencies 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Teen Talk Line is contracted through the Chester County Office of Mental Health. The line is staffed by certified peer specialists from Access Services, a nonprofit organization that runs other mental health programs, including a Teen Talk Line in Montgomery County, which also uses teen volunteers to take calls. Hoogenhuis hopes to recruit teen volunteers in Chester County as well.

She is also looking for a host school where student volunteers would take calls after school in a designated area. "We have been contacting the schools, trying to set up appointments and sending out digital flyers," said Hoogenhuis. "Now that our hours have expanded, we're hoping to get additional materials - bracelets, clings, stickers and tear pads (that list the Teen Talk Line numbers) - and drop off materials in person and maybe hang up the clings on the bathroom mirrors (at the schools).

"If we had one or two schools who we had a partnership with and saw teens reaching out every day, that would be our ultimate goal," she added.

The Chester County Teen Talk Line is available by phone at 855-852-8336 and by text at 484-362-9515. For more information, visit http://www.accessservices.org/teen-talk-line. Schools or teen volunteers interested in participating in the program should contact Hoogenhuis at khoogenhuis@accessservices.org.