Home, Healing, Community: Together We Can

Housing and Homelessness

Expand existing project, program, or initiative

There are more than 20,000 homeless women in LA County and many are mothers. The freedom to change their life is something that is not easy to come by for single mothers who are struggling to find a home and a future for themselves and their children. Without intervention this number will only grow, and mothers and children will face even harsher realities. TIG's Butterfly's Haven program is creating a new model in support and community building that's sustainable and scalable. Butterfly's Haven is the vision of Brittany Walker. Brittany Walker created Butterfly's Haven after benefiting from several housing programs as a single mother with four children. Butterfly's Haven is a co-living home for single women and mothers to uplift each other and collectively raise children in a supportive environment, while also addressing gentrification and housing shortages for low-income BIPOC single mothers and families increasingly struggling to find suitable housing in LA due to high rent costs.

Butterfly's Haven resident leading programming and service development has identified and began co-creating the following programs and services for our Transitioning Adult Youth (TAY). Culturally Affirming Family Reunification (CAFR) - The CAFR program of Butterfly's Haven is Haven Families. Haven Families supports mothers and gender nonconforming parents returning home from incarceration or parents who have lost their children to get stable and regain custody of their children. The program's central tenets include family connection, community support, and mindful parenting. Special Advocates - Community residents are paired with a court appointed special advocate that ensure the continuity of their services, advocate for their needs in court and in life, and be a consistent, loving and supportive person they can count on throughout their journey. Life Coaching - On-site life coaches partner with our residents one-on-one to develop individualized life plans and reach goals including employment opportunities, sustainable housing solutions, and financial stability. Continuing Education and Life Skills - Training includes a focus on vocational, problem-solving, critical thinking, communication, self-management, and interpersonal skills to navigate everyday challenges effectively. 24-Hour, On-Site, High Quality Early Education Daycare - Soon we will provide young children with quality early childhood care to learn and grow right on the property where they live.

Developing and strengthening community is a core element to disrupting the cycle of homelessness. Having a community for emotional support and access to resources helps get any one of us through a day, or a period of struggle. TIG's continuum of care helps to establish a strong community both immediately, and for perpetuity. Through innovative construction strategies, TIG can rapidly develop transitional housing supply for those who are housing insecure. With the support of a large network of service partners, TIG's service infrastructure supports healing and upward mobility in high-quality, dignified communities. Our community-focused model closes the loop, leveraging the power of community in permanent housing not only as a driver of healing but as a preventative measure against ever entering homelessness. Moreover, BH is in the process of developing a comprehensive policy and advocacy agenda aligned to our efforts to offer sustainable housing solutions to community members.

We are very aware that the program is having meaningful impact. As we move forward with our desire to provide additional services/trainings to our community of residents while expanding the number of community residents, we are intent on designing a meaningful rubric to measure impact over the next year. We plan to incorporate the following in this rubric. Output Measures- Tracking the number of individuals who participated and completed the program- Track the volume of services delivered or activities conducted Outcome Measures- Tracking immediate and long term changes to program participants- Measuring the ultimate impact of the program Efficiency Measures- Calculating the cost per program participant or cost per outcome achieved- Measuring the efficiency of service/trainings Quality Measures- Gauging participant satisfaction with the program provided- Collecting and analyze feedback from other internal/external stakeholders