Success Stories
A testimonial from a volunteer (6/14/2010):
Just outside of our nation’s capitol, you will find one of the most expensive regions in the country juxtaposed with nearly 1,000 homeless people in Alexandria and Arlington. Here neighbors are helping neighbors gain independence and stability with the guidance of the Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless (AACH), a remarkable non-profit organization rebuilding lives one person at a time.
About a year and a half ago, the women’s group to which I belong sought out a service project and decided to get involved with the Adopt-A-Family program operated by AACH. Two other women in the group and I volunteered to serve as contacts for the family we would “adopt.” By adopting this family, we agreed to work with them toward self-sufficiency.
AACH is a unique non-profit organization because its case managers and volunteers focus on life skills. Case managers develop individualized plans that address root causes for homelessness. For instance, the caseworker with whom we work advised us to help our “mom,” whose name is withheld to respect her privacy, with budgetary issues, researching and enrolling in ESL classes, navigating the citizenship application process and so on. We tackled these tasks in concert so that our “mom” could learn and grow more confident. Along the way, deep friendships emerged. We share in her successes, failures and fears. We were there when her son took his first steps, when she learned to check the oil in her first car, when she became a naturalized citizen, and when she needed to brainstorm about finding a new job with a higher hourly wage.
Since 1985, AACH has provided transitional housing assistance to the homeless in our area on a temporary basis with benchmarks that a client must meet while in the program. Clients are encouraged to embrace financial security, and make regular deposits into a savings account. The case manager working with our family has a compassionate heart and quick wit, yet she does not pull her punches when talking to our “mom” about issues like employment and long-term planning. An immigrant herself, this case manager pushes her client to speak up when she when a misunderstanding arises. It is a joy to watch the evolution of our “mom” go from shying away from conversation with a stranger to walking into a packed Red Cross classroom for CPR certification to pursue her dream of becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant
AACH also runs Sullivan House, a 50-bed shelter available to women and their children on a short term basis. As of last weekend, the shelter housed eleven infants whose mothers are receiving training in parenting, self-esteem and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The good news is that these families are not alone. AACH and its more than 200 volunteers provide a variety of services from tutoring children to working at the front desk.
While many worthy organizations give nutritious meals and a night’s shelter to those in need, AACH goes deeper with its holistic approach. The results speak volumes: over 70 percent of clients leaving AACH programs are successful in securing permanent housing and families that exited the Sullivan House program during the past year did so with an average of $1,580 in savings. I am nominating AACH for the TODAY and the Pepsi Refresh Project because this organization can use its best practices to help even more families reclaim their independence with the additional resources from NBC and Pepsi.
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Success Stories
- For Welfare Families the Tools to Build Better Lives, May 29, 1998
- Guiding Families on the Hard Path to Independence, November 21, 2002
The education [training] helped me earn more money and be in a career that I enjoy. The budget showed me what I was, at the beginning, wasting my money on and helps me stay focused toward my future goals.
Client Needs: |
contact Lauren Barth at lbarth@aachhomeless.org |