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Reggie Wilson admits he was one of those kids.

“Yeah, I thought I knew everything, and they weren’t going to tell me what to do,” the 20-year-old said as he attached price tags to donated clothing at Joseph’s Gear, a hip-hop clothing resale shop and job-training program of Joseph’s House.

Wilson is responsible for merchandising and helping stock the rows of gently used and new clothing with the Phat Farm and Ecko designer labels — some with original price tags — that fill the shop in the Dudley-Lee Shopping Center on East Market Street.

Two years ago, he was homeless and trying to finish high school. Joseph’s House, which provides a home for young men ages 18-21, was the only place in Greensboro to take him in. And when he missed curfew the first time, he was assigned an essay on Willie Lynch.

“It was that or move out,” said Wilson, now a high school graduate taking college courses. “I kind of wanted the discipline, but not really, if that makes sense.”

Joseph’s House President Nancy McLean knows what he means.

“Out of all God’s creatures, young people are the hardest to help,” McLean said with a smile. “It’s the 'I know everything stage’ when we’re trying to help them learn how to make good choices. It takes so much in resources and patience.”

That’s also why she’s fighting so hard to keep Joseph’s House open, despite the battle to come up with the $35,000-per-month operating budget. Joseph’s Gear, she hopes, will become another revenue stream to keep the program running. Joseph’s House has room for nine young men at a time, though the program also operates a drop-in resource center, where other young men who do not live there can come and eat or take a shower.

Joseph’s Gear solicits gently used clothing that appeals especially to young adults, ages 18 to 25. Jeans sell for $10 and men’s suits for $20 or less.

“It’s as if someone bought it and never wore it,” Wilson said of a charcoal gray Brooks Brothers suit among more than a dozen.

Nearby were rows of dress shirts, stylish striped Polos and Stacy Adam shoes for men, and pocketbooks, sling-back sandals and spring dresses for women. Children’s Easter dresses are at the end of one rack — each for just a few dollars.

“I’ve seen the power of this kind of approach in generating dollars for nonprofits before, and in this economy we are all looking for ways to get bargains,” said Tara Sandercock of the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro.

That group and the Tannenbaum Sternberger Foundation were instrumental in providing startup funds for the project. The Community Foundation had commissioned a comprehensive housing study in 2006.

McLean envisioned a place for young homeless people who are too young for the adult homeless shelters and too old for the network of places, including foster homes.

She and her husband began Joseph’s House after dealing first-hand with a son’s addiction to drugs and falling prey to crime. They wanted to help other young men find their way out of what they saw as a maze of drug addiction, crime and homelessness.

“This was such a glaring gap in our community,” Sandercock said. “Our community didn’t have a place until Joseph’s House that’s focusing on this age group — and it’s so pivotal in their becoming a successful adult.”

That’s by providing shelter and counseling and by networking with other groups to provide substance-abuse treatment and health care. Some churches have held special offerings or made donations to help out.

“Success for me is a young person who comes in as a homeless high school kid and sticks with this program long enough to graduate high school,” McLean said. “Success is a young person who does 24 months with us and leaves with their own transportation and job or are headed to college. It’s a kid who stays long enough to get his life together and is able to reconnect with his family.”

Contact Nancy McLaughlin at 373-7049 or nancy.mclaughlin@news-record.com