Family Promise of Carbon County, which provides temporary services to families experiencing homeless in Carbon County, received a grant from the First Federal Charitable Foundation that it will use to help cover the costs of additional shelter expenses related to its acquisition of static shelter site in Nesquehoning.
Family Promises of Carbon County has been operating the only homeless shelter for families in the county for the past decade. In 2019, the organization joined a newly-formed homelessness task force, along with other service providers and elected officials, to work to significantly improve homeless services for the community. The task force revealed several unmet needs in the community, including the necessity of a shelter to serve women experiencing homelessness and the ability to serve additional families who are waiting for services.
The organization has traditionally provided meals, fellowship and bed nights through a rotation among nine host sites. Although this model will continue, it will be able to more than double its service capacity and recruit more volunteers by adding a static option.
In October of 2019, Carbon County officials committed Community Development Block Grant funding toward the acquisition of the new shelter site in Nesquehoning. However, as a result of the quick acquisition of the new facility, the organization needed assistance as it adjusts its budget to account for the higher operational costs.
Krista Brown-Ly, Family Promise of Carbon County executive director, said, “The funding from First Federal Charitable foundation will allow Family Promise of Carbon County to expand our presence in our community and expand our programs and services. This funding will assist us with additional operating costs for our relocation to Nesquehoning from Lehighton. This move allows our program to become a hybrid model of host sites for our families and space on-site where they can sleep; this will happen in the parsonage. Our host sites have decreased and we want to provide a safe and stable environment during the families’ stay with us. Additionally, with this funding we will be able to expand services to include shelter for single women. This will happen in what was the church, as there is currently no other emergency shelter for single women in the county.”
Brown-Ly said having support from the First Federal Charitable Foundation will greatly help the organization with its mission to meet the basic needs of families experiencing homelessness in Carbon County and the surrounding communities.
“We are extremely grateful that the First Federal Charitable Foundation is in our community, and that they approved our grant request for program expansion is very exciting news. Having a foundation available that is willing and able to assist small nonprofits like ours is a blessing and that they are able to help us meet unmet needs is our community is a godsend. We could not do our work without our community and financial support. First Federal Charitable Foundation brought both of those needed items together for us and we could not be happier to receive their gift,” she said.
The First Federal Charitable Foundation was established to support worthwhile community causes. It strives to nurture nonprofit institutions and programs that will effectively serve those in need from the community, empower nonprofit institutions and programs that will expand their presence in and services to the area, and promote opportunities for new nonprofit institutions and programs that will serve the unserved.
Nonprofit organizations with a 501(c)(3) IRS designation that are located in Luzerne, Schuylkill, Carbon and Columbia counties are eligible to apply. Any organization whose headquarters is in another county but services either Luzerne, Schuylkill, Carbon or Columbia counties may apply for a grant to be used in one of those counties.