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The Family Life Coaching Center: A holistic case management program for under-resourced families and individuals in greater Hartford. Our volunteer life coaches/mentors provide a variety of services under our trade name, “Neighborhood Life Coaching.” One of our current specialized initiatives is the HEARTH Project, [Housing, Emergency Assistance, Resource, Training & Help].
Project BackgroundThe H.E.A.R.T.H. Project [Housing, Emergency, Assistance, Resource, Training & Help] was developed to respond to the growing needs of families on the brink of homelessness. The purpose of this program is to provide short-term monetary assistance to Hartford homeowners and tenants who are gainfully employed and in danger of losing their place of residence due to a family crisis. Our goal is to help those families who have a good prospect of retaining their household through the allocation of a one-time grant and/budgeting information and service referral. Launch and EngagementThe Hearth Project was designed with assistance from The Blue Hills Civic Association. Through staff collaboration and research The Conference developed the Hearth Project based on best practices. With this in mind, a marketing/communication plan was designed and executed. The Hearth Project was then launched through outreach to local non-profit organizations, faith communities, government agencies and through its specialized electronic media campaign. The Hearth Project has grown exponentially through word-of-mouth referrals. OutcomesThrough The Hearth Project 97 families have been assisted through grants, referral or training. Over the course of the sixteen months we have been able to touch the lives of almost 100 Hartford families struggling to stay afloat. While the grant amount is a ‘help,’ we have found that most who come for assistance, need much more than $1000 to $1,500 to be able to maintain their homes. This is a constant challenge. As an organization “committed to social justice for all people,” this project has opened our eyes to some of the critical needs in our city. Many of those who applied are living in sub-par housing. Many of the parents desperately want to get their children in housing free from rat and roach infestation. Many of the single mothers possessed a strong desire move their children away from neighborhoods where their sons were at high risk of being impacted by neighborhood violence. Next, we encountered several families on the brink of destruction because of the economic impact of our inadequate health care system. For many of our working poor families, surgery, sickness and even maternity leave left them suspended without a safety-net -- at risk of being homeless. Finally, The Hearth Project has shown us the importance of diverse social supports for single parents raising their children and the challenges many of those living pay-check to pay-check experience when the check is cut or the job is terminated. Sadly, many of those we encountered lost part-time employment and were even ineligible for unemployment checks. In ClosingThe Conference of Churches is in a unique position to impact families on the brink of homelessness. Through The Hearth Project we have established a referral network of services which is well positioned to help those who are just entering the human service system. As a culturally competent, faith-based organization, we treat those we serve -- the way we would like to be treated. We believe that those needing help – need to also retain their dignity. It is our hope to continue this work in the future. We are currently not accepting applications. |
