Hilton Foundation Brings New Hope on Mother's Day With National Initiative For At-Risk And Homeless Mothers And Children
Projects in Los Angeles and Minneapolis/St. Paul selected to pilot model aimed at identifying long-term solutions.
Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) May 10, 2007
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation today announced selection of three projects for its national initiative to improve housing, health, and development of young homeless and at-risk children and their mothers. Two are in Los Angeles and the third is Reuben Lindh Family Services of Minneapolis/St. Paul. Each will pilot and evaluate innovative programs for homeless children and their families, then share the strategies and services proven to be effective to provide a roadmap to enhance services nationally.
National partners in the initiative are The National Center on Family Homelessness, the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and the Child Welfare League of America. The three partner organizations will act as the initiative's Coordinating Center, bringing expertise to project selection, provision of training and technical assistance to project sites, and evaluation of pilot programs and services.
"We are honored to be selected for this national initiative and excited to work with three of the finest organizations in the U. S. on issues of child welfare and homelessness," says Dianne Haulcy, Executive Director of Reuben Lindh Family Services. "We are also grateful to the Hilton Foundation for their commitment to homelessness and early-childhood development."
In Minnesota, about 10,000 people are homeless on any given night, with the majority of them concentrated in the Twin Cities area
Reuben Lindh will partner with Wayside House and St. Stephen's Human Services to integrate housing, child development services, chemical dependency and mental health into a single delivery system.
The five-year initiative, Strengthening At Risk and Homeless Young Mothers and Children, was launched in 2006 by the Hilton Foundation to mitigate the effects of homelessness on childhood development. Funding for the five-year project will total $11.2 million, with $3.6 million generated as funding matches by local partners.
Other selected projects are PROTOTYPES, Centers for Innovation in Health, Mental Health and Social Services and Antelope Valley Homeless Coalition, both of Los Angeles.
"Children and young mothers who are homeless or on the verge of homelessness face circumstances and choices that most of us cannot imagine," said Steven M. Hilton, President and CEO of the Hilton Foundation. "Our goal is to find workable solutions that pave the way for them to lead stable, happy and productive lives and that can be implemented by public and private agencies across the country."
The target population is young at-risk or homeless mothers, age 25 and younger with at least one child five years of age or younger. It is anticipated that approximately 500 children and their families will benefit annually from Hilton Foundation initiative including housing stability, maternal and child-well-being, strengthened family functioning and family preservation.
"We are very pleased to have identified strong local programs serving areas faced with serious problems of family homelessness," said Ellen Bassuk, MD, President and founder of The National Center on Family Homelessness. "Each of our local partners will implement innovative approaches to helping children and families escape homelessness and thrive again in the community. We expect this project to yield important findings to guide others. "
The initiative has two main components: direct services for homeless children and mothers and capacity building and training for local agencies serving homeless families. The goal is to improve integration of housing/homelessness systems and child development/welfare systems locally in order to improve programs and services nationally.
This initiative grew out of two of the Hilton Foundation's mission priorities - homelessness and early childhood development. Homelessness funding from the foundation includes a $20 million, 13-year commitment to providing supportive housing for homeless people experiencing mental illness. In the area of early childhood development, the foundation has awarded $38.6 million to create the Hilton/Early Head Start Training Program.
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
The Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by hotel entrepreneur and business leader Conrad N. Hilton, who left his fortune to the foundation with instructions to help the most disadvantaged and vulnerable throughout the world without regard to religion, ethnicity or geography. With offices in Los Angeles, California and Reno, Nevada, the foundation has provided more than $500 million for charitable projects throughout the United States and the world. For more information, visit www. hiltonfoundation. org.
Reuben Lindh Family Services
Reuben Lindh Family Services (RLFS) began in 1969 as a day activity center for handicapped children. Today, RLFS serves over 1200 families a year with a unique array of 11 programs including therapeutic pre-schools, parenting classes, supervised visitation, chemical dependency aftercare, housing advocacy, and child care. The mission is to preserve and nurture families in the context of their culture. For more information, visit www. reubenlindh. org
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