A TRANSITIONAL HOUSING PROJECT
This project is focused on the physical and mental well-being of all female veterans facing various transitions. It is designed as a transitional housing program that provides supportive services, including job counseling; requires veterans to seek and maintain employment; requires veterans to pay reasonable rent; requires sobriety as a condition of occupancy, and serves other female veterans in need of housing on a space-available basis. This program aims to help all 50 households achieve self-sufficiency and have the ability to pay their rent, utilities and provide the standard, necessary items for a healthy lifestyle for their family with adequate food, clothing, and shelter.
Without a stable place to live and a support system to help them address their underlying problems, most struggling female veterans bounce from one emergency system to the next—from the streets to shelters to public and VA hospitals to psychiatric institutions and detox centers and back to the streets—endlessly. The high cost of this cycle of homelessness, inhumane and economic terms, can be seen in many people’s lives throughout the Gulf Coast.
The Empowerment Center tenants will have access to a multitude of services provided by MWV and collaborating community service providers, including primary health services, mental health services, educational services, employment services, life skills, and child care services applicable.
We will determine how many persons had an unmet service through clearly defined performance measures to be associated with a specific condition (physical disability, developmental disability, chronic health, HIV/AIDS, mental health, substance abuse). They were able to receive services for their condition by the time they exited the program.
An annual tenant survey completed by onsite staff and the ongoing case management of tenants helps determine the effectiveness of programs and whether they are meeting defined benchmarks.
SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY
The Center will provide space for supportive services to be delivered onsite and have additional office space so that the property manager could also house their staff onsite. Classes are offered onsite in the beginning to intermediate computers, as are educational and vocational assessment and case management services. Volunteers and other community resources also provide art therapy groups, meditation groups, and physical fitness classes.
Community-building activities are also the responsibility of the Social Services staff. These include support for a tenant’s active council, which meets weekly, movie nights on a donated large screen television, holiday parties & events, and group participation in cultural events in the larger community.