Help them Home!

Housing and Homelessness

South Bay

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

In LA county there are almost 70,000 unhoused individuals. In our service area alone there are approximately 4,500 unhoused individuals, 500 of those represent families. We currently have approximately 150 families on our waitlist alone. The challenges that homeless families face are compounded by the scarcity of affordable housing options. Rental prices have skyrocketed, and the availability of safe, affordable housing is limited in our area. The impact of these challenges can be far-reaching and deeply detrimental. Children are particularly vulnerable in these circumstances, as instability and lack of adequate housing negatively affect their physical health, education, and emotional well-being. Many families are hesitant to enter into shelter or seek help due to stigma and the restrictions on gender and age. We believe that by keeping families together we are helping to reduce the level of trauma children and parents alike already face due to housing insecurity.

This grant will support our shelter and transitional housing operations. We are one of the few shelters that can support a family unit as a whole. We can house up to 11 families, but the need is greater than what we are able to offer at this time. This grant will help us continue to support the families we are serving and hopefully help us expand to serve more families in need. By providing alternate options for parents, we hope to offer a more stable environment for the children and the parents.

By changing the trajectory of a child, we are having generational impact for the City of Los Angeles. Our shelter and wrap around services are not only for the adults, but also for the children. Our programs include not only shelter, but programs specific to the children. Trauma informed summer camp, mentorship, STEM lessons and social emotional well being classes are a few the foundational programs we offer with the hope of making a lasting difference.

Our shelter and transitional housing programs have been operating since 2015. Last year we were able to offer support to almost 500 families. We were able to house 35 families. Since our opening in 2015, 75% of our families have remained housed. Our goal is to not only house our families, but help them find sustainable, long term solutions for their situation. We do this through person centered and trauma informed case management as well as connecting families to our strong community based support to help fulfill important needs.