Serve City wishes to share the exciting, new housing programs we are providing in 2025. Please see the details below that our Program Director put together:
Serve City's Purpose is to step into the gaps with our neighbors who are hurting and in need and to provide for basic human needs. Over the last couple of years, we have worked to refocus our programming and policies to reflect our core values: being Christ-centered, operating in Excellence, offering Compassion through action, encouraging Empowerment, and building trusting Relationships with the individuals we serve, the community, and churches who support us. Serve City believes we can make Our Vision - to be known as a Christ-centered ministry that REBUILDS COMMUNITY by offering people a safe place to belong, RESTORES DIGNITY through engagement and education, and RENEWS HOPE by demonstrating the love of God a reality. We can accomplish this with continued partnerships from pastors and their congregations.
New Programs
Permanent Supportive Housing: Shekinah is a Hebrew word that means "dwelling" or "settling". It's used in Judaism to refer to God's presence in the world. Serve City's goal for the building located on 522 East Avenue is to provide a place for God's presence to dwell in the lives of the people residing there. The individuals we will serve in our new permanent supportive housing (PSH) program come to Serve City with the most intense needs and have experienced the longest homelessness. Our Mission is to offer God’s abundant life to our MOST VULNERABLE neighbors through a ministry of help and hope. This PSH program provides both.
The building has undergone a comprehensive facelift. The walls have gotten a new coat of paint. Old appliances have been removed or replaced. The HVAC units have been replaced thanks to a $20k grant from the city of Hamilton. We are developing a community room for our partners to build relationships with tenants by providing Bible study, life skills classes, treatment groups, crafting, bingo, movie nights, and much more! The new laundry room will house two new washers and dryers to provide tenants access to free laundry.
Thanks to a Continuum of Care grant from HUD, three new program staff have been hired and began working in the building around the clock. By providing additional supervision for the building this extra security has helped to keep the tenants safe and provides the needed support to maintain housing. These Support Specialists will work with tenants to maintain a clean, comfortable, safe, and secure living environment. The Housing Coordinator will walk each tenant through the application process and connect them with community resources to ensure that they have access to needed support.
Youth Homeless Demonstration Program: We have partnered with the Butler County Educational Service Center and the Butler County Family and Children First Council to offer the W.I.S.H. Program. We Imagine Stable Housing (WISH) has a housing navigator, employed by the ESC and a housing case manager, employed by Serve City. We will operate a transitional housing building and provide Rapid Rehousing support for youth experiencing homelessness. We have seen a tremendous increase in the quantity of youth who find themselves without a safe place to sleep at night. This supportive housing program will provide the foundation youth need to build their lives.
Serve City appreciates your continued support and prayers. Blessings!
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