Homelessness in particular seems to many people an intractable social problem impossible to resolve. At Good Shepherd Center, we have increasingly focused our efforts and resources on assisting individuals and families in making a successful transition to housing and stability in the community. Far from hopeless, we see every day that, given a hand up during their time of crisis, men, women, and families can and do leave the ranks of the homeless. With help from Good Shepherd Center, as many as 100 homeless individuals and families move to housing each year!
This special fund has been created to assist Good Shepherd Center guests and residents in pursuing educational, employment, and other constructive endeavors toward achieving a lasting transition to housing and independence in the community. Examples of eligible materials include tuition for job training (truck driving, culinary program, etc.) or approved college coursework (business administration, nursing, etc.); tools or supplies for an apprenticeship or employed position; and clothing, transportation, or child care necessary for completion of an approved program.
Interested candidates submit a plan including goals, objectives, and a description of how their individual success, a return to lasting self-sufficiency, will be furthered by the proposed activity. Prospective recipients are assigned a sponsor from the business, academic, or public service sector who will work with them to strengthen and present their plans for consideration by the Rising Tide Fund Trustees. A limited number of grants are available annually, with the Trustees typically reviewing applications three times each year.
Employment, job training, and education are important components of Good Shepherd’s work with our homeless guests. In addition to connecting as many as 100 unduplicated individuals with work monthly through our Jobs Program, we also assist our guests in pursuing job training needed to improve their employment prospects. Project Uplift, a program of Countywide Community Development Corporation in Brunswick County, is just one example. Students in the 10-week program receive training and certification related to the construction trades, forklift operation, and OSHA standards. At the April 2007 graduation ceremony, 6 of 16 graduates were guests of the
Good Shepherd shelter!
On April 26, four residents—a Good Shepherd record—graduated together from the Fourth Quarter Transitional Living Center, completing 18 months of our highly structured program combining housing with case management, substance abuse counseling, and assistance with employment and educational goals. Our graduates return to independent housing with improved physical and mental health, employed or receiving disability benefits, and confident in their ability to remain healthy, sober, productive members of the community.
