As everyday life takes a rest this Thanksgiving, Bridge Over Troubled Waters wants homeless children to know they are not alone and it’s there for them to celebrate the holiday.

Roughly 200 young people, ranging in age from 14 to 24, feasted on turkey, fried chicken and fixings while playing games and enjoying fellowship at Bridge’s headquarters in Downtown Crossing on Wednesday.

“Everyone is going home, college kids are coming back home and trying to rest, and families are getting together. Our young people don’t have those experiences, they don’t have a home to go to,” said Elizabeth Jackson, president and CEO of the nonprofit which provides a full continuum of services to homeless, runaway and at-risk youth.

“This is an opportunity to celebrate and be with them, to provide a foundation for them,” Jackson told the Herald. “This distracts them (from) that it is cold outside and where they will sleep tonight. It shows that we care and want to celebrate with them.”

Bridge serves more than 2,000 children annually, with roughly 70 to 80% facing trauma, whether it’s from being threatened, witnessing domestic violence or experiencing child abuse.

Behavioral health therapists are on 24/7 during the holiday season which Jackson said is the most challenging time of the year for the young people they serve, knowing that they don’t have what it seems like everyone else has: joy, family, a warm place to escape the cold.

To help meet the needs of its youth, Bridge teamed up with Liberty Mutual Insurance in June to open up a nine-bedroom, co-op-style apartment in Brighton.

The Brunson Liberty House, purchased with a $1.3 million gift from Liberty Mutual, serves as a “next step” for homeless young adults who have graduated from the Bridge’s transitional living program.

That initiative offers employment and continuing education opportunities for participants who meet weekly with a Bridge counselor and work with case managers on reaching their goals.

The migrant crisis, which has put the state’s emergency shelter system at capacity for months, has put a spotlight on Massachusetts’ “broken homeless system,” Jackson said. It had already a been challenge to find housing and employment for young people before the influx, she said.

“We provide a university of life skills for our young people,” Jackson said. “It’s not about keeping and enabling young people to stay homeless. It’s about teaching and guiding them, mastering the skills to move forward, and to be independent, successful young adults.

“They’re still young,” she added. “I don’t want to create another homeless system for young adults. That makes no sense whatsoever.”

For people who want to help youth celebrate a special holiday, visit www.bridgeotw.org/holiday. There, you can learn how to buy gifts off wish lists, donate gift cards or give to the nonprofit’s holiday drive.

Anocia and Giavanna high five after winning a trivia game during a Thanksgiving meal at Bridge Over Troubled Waters. (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald)