From the Desk of the Executive Director

Finding a Home - Transforming Lives

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2

As this year ends, thank you for your faithfulness in supporting Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area. Your compassion for single moms facing homelessness helped us serve 16 moms and 25 children – a milestone for us. We hope to serve 16 moms and their children again next year. 

With your continued generosity, we can.

We've increased our resources with a new full-time lead case manager and development coordinator. Our staff is excited about the future of Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area as we continue to adapt and adjust to meet the rapidly changing needs of the moms and families seeking our services.

Importantly, we find more than just housing for a family through our services. We help find a place to call home – a place that fosters family well-being. 

We provide moms with a case manager who helps them find safe and sustainable housing and provides case management services, which include but are not limited to referral to support services and resources in the community, budgeting and money management education, development of

goals, and encouraging and modeling healthy and supportive relationships through a strengths-based and trauma-informed approach.

Further, we provide training to Neighboring Volunteer groups. Think of them this way. Who do you call if your child is sick or your car breaks down? Probably a family member or friend. But our moms don't have those supportive relationships. Neighboring Volunteers simply do life with the mom and her children by offering tangible and emotional support and encouragement. But it all begins with the stability of a place called home. When the stress of being homeless is alleviated, focus can start on ways to sustain housing and address the family's needs. 

During this Christmas season, we should remember that this is not a time of celebration for many families. Together, we can change that. Please help us end family homelessness. 

Our year-end appeal is in full swing. Thank you to those friends who have donated. For those who haven't, there is still time. We are grateful for your financial support.

I wish you and your families a joyous Christmas season!

With blessings,

Kevin Lutz

Executive Director

Celebrating our Successes

We're proud of the four moms who graduated from our program this year. Without our Neighboring Volunteers, compassionate financial supporters, and landlords willing to partner, our moms and their children would not be able to transform their lives. Thank you! Here are their stories.

Amy

Before Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area, Amy received a job offer that was good for her family financially, but it was three hours away from home. She was living with friends, but there wasn't room for her children, so her children lived three hours away. She would go several agonizing weeks without seeing them. "Emotionally, we all were hurting and longing for stability and consistent time together," Amy shared.

Once Amy was in the program, she found a full-time job that she loves close to home, and she and her children are living together. Her goal was to finish her degree and save to buy her new home. With the help from Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area and her Neighboring Volunteers (NV), she and her family have stability in their lives to achieve these goals. Strong bonds of friendship were made with her Neighboring Volunteers, and Amy looks forward to joining an NV group to be a neighbor to a new mom.

Latreese

Latreese overcame the negativity and rejection she faced while searching for a job due to a speech impediment. Latreese told us, "I reached out to the program because I was in a bad place at the time. I wasn't working for quite some time because it was very rough for me to get a job, mainly because nobody could see past my speech impediment. I stutter." 

Every employer turned her down after the first interview. Latreese was a single mother of two children and was facing homelessness. She needed to work. She wanted to provide for her family, but the decisions of others and circumstances out of her control took her choices away. Once she entered our program, Latreese worked hard and found a home and a job, and she was able to sustain her family. "Just having people believe in you and have God by your side also, you can do anything you put your mind to," said Latreese. "I met people that are so genuine and kind and just love me and my kids as if we were family." 

Janine

For eight long months, Janine lived in a hotel room with two double beds and three children, two of whom were teenage twin boys, and she worked two jobs. She was trying to keep her family together and housed in any way she could. Returning to their former home wasn't an option as it meant walking back into a domestic violence situation.

But no matter how hard she worked or how much she sacrificed for her children, nothing she did seemed enough to change their circumstances. A previous graduate encouraged Janine to reach out to us. "Bridge of Hope has helped me in many ways. They brought people into my life who gave me the strength to know and believe that I can do anything I set out to do," Janine said.

Janine began taking classes to continue her education while in our program and received a promotion at her job. Her sons have regained confidence and emotional health with the relationships they built through their church youth group.

Faith

Faith and her children left a domestic violence situation in Philadelphia and moved to Central Pennsylvania to live with a friend. Unfortunately, the beds that caring individuals donated were infested with bed bugs. They had to move to a shelter. From there, she entered our program, found stable housing, and learned how to budget. Faith developed a strong relationship with her Neighboring Volunteers, who surrounded her and her children with love, encouragement, and a commitment to continue to be her family! Faith now has safe and sustainable housing, a strong and resilient family, and supportive neighboring relationships. 

What it means to be a Neighboring Volunteer

Sometimes in life, we just need someone to be there for us. Someone who will listen over a cup of coffee. Someone who will lend a hand. Someone like a Neighboring Volunteer.

A Neighboring Volunteer is pretty much what it sounds like - a volunteer who becomes a neighbor to a single mom with no family or friends to call upon for support. They come from Christian faith communities who partner with us to create Neighboring Volunteer groups.

Most of us have a network of family and friends we can reach out to for assistance. We may call grandma and grandpa to watch a sick child. Or maybe we know a stay-at-home mom who could help out. If our car breaks down, we have a trusted friend who can pick up our child from daycare. There are so many ways family and friends help working moms with care for their children.

However, the moms in our program don't have these relationships. They are usually isolated and alone, trying to deal with life's daily challenges while also overcoming adverse and traumatic circumstances.

Support networks are vital for stabilizing homeless families and their children in the community and helping mothers transition to self-support. Neighboring Volunteers may have resources and connections to help the family.

Families experience positive impacts from relationships and an expanded community of support that develops from their Neighboring Volunteers. The impact may include personal empowerment, tangible help, expanded networks for resources, the formation of

new relationships, and an enhanced sense of self-worth.

A case manager and Neighboring Volunteers support the family in achieving their identified goals. Relationships form when everyone works together to achieve goals, build upon strengths and resources, and address barriers identified by the family.

The family, Neighboring Volunteers, and case manager are part of a three-way partnership that creates a Neighborhood of Support. Each member brings their unique experiences, talents, and skills to the Neighborhood.

With individuals willing to be part of a Neighboring Volunteer group, Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area can serve single moms in need. Many of us tap our networks regularly on behalf of our children, family members, or friends, while families experiencing homelessness may lack such networks or perhaps have exhausted the connections

they have.

Neighboring Volunteers help moms do life. They bring their hearts and helping hands to end family homelessness.

Please contact Bridge of Hope Harrisburg Area if you would like to learn more.

Mark Your Calendars Now for Our 2024 Gala

Please note a NEW location and month!

May 11, 2024

 Best Western Premier, Harrisburg

Stay Tuned for More Details