If you are homeless in Union County, you needn't suffer alone.
If you live in Union County, New Jersey, you have several places to go should you lose your home to eviction or foreclosure. You can go to one of these places for temporary housing until you can afford to live on your own. These shelters also offer workshops on stay independent once you leave the housing, and some even offer affordable housing. Most of these shelters welcome people of any gender, race or religion, except the ones created specifically for battered or pregnant women.
Elizabeth Coalition
The Elizabeth Coalition to House the Homeless started in Elizabeth, New Jersey, in 1981. Its purpose was to respond to the needs of the homeless population, which was growing at the time due to a recession. When the nonprofit organization began, it focused its attention primarily on the needs of the homeless adult population. However, in later years the group developed a program for children called Berenice's place. In addition, the shelter created Operation Warm Heart, which offers a place to stay for homeless people between Dec. 1 and March 31 of each year.
The organization does not provide year-round shelter, but it does offer transitional housing. According to the Elizabeth Coalition website, it not only wants to work for the homeless population, but with them to help them become self-sufficient again once they re-enter the mainstream.
FISH Hospitality
The mission of FISH Hospitality is to serve homeless women and families by providing shelter and food, and other forms of help, where possible. Norma Elliott and Anita Hoynes founded this program on Feb. 11, 1990. FISH Hospitality is not only about helping the homeless with their individual needs, however. It has an advocacy component known as FISH Hospitality's Advocacy Initiative. The purpose of this program is to influence government representatives to make housing affordable. It is a grass-roots initiative that encourages members to contact their legislators to influence them to pass laws that will help meet the housing needs of low-income families.
Home First: Support for Homeless Women and Families
Home First Interfaith Housing and Family Services opened in 1986 as the Interfaith Council for the Homeless of Union County. In 2006, the group changed its name to Home First Interfaith Housing and Family Services to emphasize its evolution from a homeless shelter to an organization that stresses the importance of moving the homeless into affordable housing. One of the main goals of the group is to bring its clients to self-sufficiency. To this end, in 1989, the organization began to provide rental assistance for families who wish to transition from homeless shelters back to the mainstream housing market. The nonprofit realized that it must institute training programs that addressed the root causes of this problem. For instance, one of its programs offers assistance on budgeting. Poor monetary planning can lead to eviction due to nonpayment of rent.
In 1996, the organization bought its first four units of affordable housing. As of 2011, that number has risen to about 50. The goal is to get homeless individuals out of assisted living into independent housing, arming them with the skills to maintain such freedom.
Proceed Incorporated
Ines Caneda, Carlos Leon, Philip Garcia, and Jose Rodriguez began the Puerto Rican Organization for Community Education and Economic Development, better known as PROCEED, on Nov. 12, 1970. Although services for this group initially targeted the Puerto Rican community, it has since expanded its services to include anyone in Union County who is in need. For example, the organization has reached out to the community of HIV-infected men, offering them transitional shelter.
Raphael's Life House
Raphael's Life House, according to the organization's website, is a nonsectarian, transitional residence for homeless women who are pregnant. It welcomes women between the ages of 18 and 23 who are physically and mentally capable of self-care. The program also requires that its participants are free from addiction to controlled substances. The facility has 12 rooms in which staff provide care for these new mothers and their babies. The maximum time that you can stay at Raphael's Life House is a year. However, according to the organization website, the Life House will perform a six-month followup service for new families during their first six months of independent living.
Tags: Union County, FISH Hospitality, Life House, affordable housing, Elizabeth Coalition