AN OVERVIEW OF OUR APPROACH

WHAT

WE DO

Family Promise is the nation’s leading organization working to prevent and end family homelessness. Our innovative solutions include homelessness prevention, emergency shelter, stabilization, and housing. We also provide an array of community services: food pantries, drop-in community centers, clothing closets, transportation programs, and more. See our video on this page which describes our Shelter Program. At the bottom of this page, you can see what other services we provide and our Programs and Services page briefly describes our multi-faceted work on behalf of families.

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OUR 5-POINT

MODEL

Family Promise uses a five-point model to address the problem of homelessness:

The first avenue to reduce the problem of homelessness is to prevent it before it happens.  Family Promise assists those who are in, or who are nearing, financial crisis.  Strategies for prevention include:  counseling, providing education, and making referrals to other agencies.

Often thought of as THE intervention offered by Family Promise, providing emergency shelter to those in need is a critical part of our overall solution to helping families regain their independence.  For us, shelter includes not only meals and housing, but also a rigorous process of education and support.  Clients are required to complete courses of study in financial literacy, tenant relations, and job acquisition to name a few.

It is not enough to help clients find a home or apartment; they need to be positioned to maintain their independence long-term.  For this reason, Family Promise takes steps to ensure our client’s ability to be stable in their newly found independence (e.g., have two months’ salary in savings, and continued support by our case manager).

Clients of the Family Promise network form a community of individuals at similar points in their life.  These connections often create a sense of community that is supportive of maintaining hardly won independence.

The fifth point of our process is Promise.  Promise is the idea that clients’ lives have been transformed and they now have the promise of much better times ahead.  It is our goal to not only return clients to independence, but to also empower them with the skills and a belief that they can prosper and flourish in their new lives.  This is our highest goal and the reason we include “Promise” in our name.  Our ultimate goal is to help clients leave with a sense of excitement and optimism about their new lives.

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