By Aubrey Thorlakson | Development Associate
Families Moving Forward has had a busy and exciting start to year 2016! What was previously the transitional shelter known as Genesis Home has successfully merged with Durham Interfaith Hospitality Network to recreate and re-imagine itself and its mission in the Durham Community. Through our Capital Campaign, we were able to finance the complete reconstruction of our building’s first floor, opening up 8 new family suites to provide temporary homes to struggling families.
Approximately 170 families experience homelessness in Durham annually.
“I have a lot of compassion for the families we serve at our shelter,” a staff member states, “I receive phone calls daily from parents asking for help, or mothers crying because their children are suffering and unprotected from the climate, hot or cold, because she has no other option than to have her family sleep in their car in a park”. (Aubrey Thorlakson, Development Associate).
Everyone can agree that a starving, sick, or unprotected child is a crime against humanity, and it is our mission through an emergency shelter and rapid re-housing program to end the crisis of homelessness in Durham by 2020. We believe it is possible, and we see success every day.
Erica and her three young children successfully moved out of our program into their own two bedroom apartment early this April within a community they felt happy and comfortable. “I’m living right near a friend!” Erica exclaimed with a smile on her face. “Meeting with my case manager helped me stay on task, and living [at Families Moving Forward] opened my eyes and made me motivated to become independent. It’s a good program that keeps you focused and helps get your life together,” she told us in her exit interview as she excitedly begins a new chapter in her life’s story.
None of this is possible without you, our donors and supporters! Together with your help, this year so far we have successfully moved 33 individuals into permanent housing; they are exiting towards a brighter tomorrow because of those who support our cause.
We are embarking on a new chapter of our own as we finish furnishing our new building floor and get ready to welcome eight more families into our program. “The need for housing and shelter is so high,” one of our case managers tells us, “we have families that have been waiting for months to get into a program like ours. As we transition to emergency housing I want that [wait] to no longer exist”. (Amanda Sale, Family Services Coordinator)
Thanks to our many volunteers and supporters our renovation is almost complete. We are indebted to groups such as Whole Lotta Love who have gone above and beyond to make Families Moving Forward more than just a shelter, but also a temporary home. Whole Lotta Love is painting and decorating our suites to give our families more than just a place to sleep, but a space to feel proud of and safe to re-establish a new way of life. Treating our families like their own, organizations and volunteers help us create an inspiring and positive environment for everyone who walks through our open doors.
We have been inspired to continue the work that we do by your passion for our program and by your continued support. Thank you for continuing to make Families Moving Forward a safe and beautiful temporary home for families needing a second chance!
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