Published in The New Haven Register on Sunday, February 19, 2012 by Steve Higgins, Special to the Register.
After escaping an abusive relationship, Jackie (not her real name) and her three children ages 13, 9 and 8 ended up in a shelter. Although she qualified for Section 8 financial aid to rent an apartment, she did not have the funds to pay for the security deposit.
As many of us know it has certainly been a HOT summer here in CT! But that did not stop Sightlines from conducting their Day of Caring projects!
Sightlines, a financial and facilities consulting firm based in Guilford, came to United Way becasue they wanted to make a difference and needed a little help making that happen. They were going to be having a training for all their employees, from across the nation, at their headquarters in Guilford. As part of that training they thought a volunteer project would be a great way to foster teamwork and give back to the community at the same time.
As a recipient of an IBM Services Strategies for Social Media grant, United Way of Greater New Haven recently engaged eight area nonprofits in a one-day workshop designed to help organizations benefit from social network media best-practices and leverage appropriate media for its identified cause. Agencies participating in this exciting opportunity included New Haven Home Recovery, Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS), Fair Haven Community Health Center, GNH Chamber of Commerce, Columbus House, Special Olympics of CT, SARAH, Inc. and United Way of Greater New Haven.
As part of their services to provide stable housing and adequate living conditions for the area's low-income and homeless, New Haven Home Recovery accepts donated clothing and furniture items. This volunteer group from
Carmody & Torrance assisted NNHR in organizing the clothing and furniture that was collected during United Way's Days of Caring project in New Haven. This group proudly wears their "LIVE UNITED" shirts as they sort through the items.
The Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program was created in 1983 to supplement the work of local social service organizations within the United States, both private and governmental, to help people in need of emergency assistance. This collaborative effort between the private and public sectors has provided over $3.4 billion in Federal funds during its 27-year history.
The Transitional Housing Program (THP) offers women and their children who are living in family shelters in New Haven the opportunity to access supportive services and supportive housing. NHHR proposes to use United Way funding to increase the number of families they are able to serve annually through the THP. Residents in all of the New Haven family shelters, including Christian Community Action and LifeHaven, are eligible to apply for services. The program will serve 5 families.
In our region, fiscal year 2008-2009 was a year of great triumphs for supportive housing. The efforts of advocates like The Partnership for Strong Communities, Reaching Home Campaign and The Lyceum Center drove home the importance of challenging government budgetary decisions. In the midst of one of the longest budgetary debates in Connecticut, previously committed Next Steps II (dollars to develop new supportive housing units) were zeroed out from the state’s FY2009 budget.
