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Chester County Press

Family Promise schedules open house celebration for Oct. 22

10/16/2015 01:24PM ● By Steven Hoffman

Family Promise of Southern Chester County is holding an open house at the new Resource Center on Thursday, October 22 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The Center is located at 105 West Evergreen Street in West Grove.
Attendees will have an opportunity to tour the facility, visit with the Board and staff and celebrate the work of hundreds of dedicated volunteers from churches, service clubs and businesses who have completely renovated the Family Promise Resource Center in recent months.

“I am very excited to celebrate the opening of our Resource Center, said Susan Minarchi, Executive Director. “We are grateful to Assumption Blessed Virgin Mary Church in West Grove, for providing this space which is ideally suited to achieving our mission. We are looking forward to working with the hundreds of volunteers in our host and support congregations. I hope residents, volunteers and church members throughout southern Chester County will join us to celebrate our new facilities and see what we’re all about.”

Family Promise of Southern Chester County is committed to helping children and their families who are experiencing homelessness in the Oxford, Avon Grove, Kennett Consolidated, and Unionville-Chadds Ford School Districts.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education reported there were 494 school age children in Southern Chester County impacted by homelessness during the 2013-2014 school year. A sharp increase from the previous year, coupled with the lack of available shelters in southern Chester County, prompted the formation of an area Task Force on Homelessness to address this critical problem. The Task Force, which included community leaders, agencies and churches, determined the Family Promise model used by 189 affiliates around the country provided an ideal solution to alleviating family homelessness in our area.

Family Promise of Southern Chester County is part of a national, non-profit initiative founded in 1986 that currently has operations in 43 states. There are 13 affiliates located throughout Pennsylvania with three more in the process of opening.

The mission of the Family Promise program is to help children and their families achieve lasting self-sufficiency and stability by providing meals and shelter through a network of volunteers at church congregations until sustainable housing is found.

The national average for families achieving success in the program is 63 days and 80 percent of the families are successful in maintaining sustainability after a year.

The families will stay at a host church facility for dinner, fellowship and overnight sleeping accommodations. After being served a morning breakfast, families will then travel back to the Family Promise Resource Center where they will work with a Case Manager to find employment, affordable housing, and other needed social services.

School children will be picked up at the Resource Center by their schools so that they are able to maintain educational continuity.

The program will accept 4 families or 14 people at any one time. There are currently 11 Host Congregations and 13 Support Congregations committed to participating in the Family Promise program in southern Chester County.

The goal is to have a full network of 13 Host Congregations so each congregation will host only four weeks per year, once every calendar quarter. The Host Congregations will be supported by Support Congregations who do not have large enough facilities to accommodate families.


“Many generous people have worked long and hard for this moment by making donations of time, effort, money, and in-kind materials and services. It was really amazing to see the entire community come together to work toward satisfying this critical need,” said Dave Haradon, President of the Board of Directors of Family Promise of Southern Chester County. “Opening and sharing the Resource Center is an important milestone toward achieving our mission to alleviate homelessness in Southern Chester County.”

To volunteer, make a donation, or provide services, please contact Family Promise of Southern Chester County by calling 610-345-1100 or by email to [email protected].