We help children and families whose odds of success are compromised by poverty and other difficult circumstances. Programs like Project Prevention and Transitional Family Housing work closely with County and State social service agencies to assure that families stay together or are reunited in cases of severe poverty or homelessness.

Testimonies:

Dawn

When I was eight, my five siblings and I entered foster care because our father sexually abused us. After foster care which included 40 placements and multiple juvenile detention centers, I found myself 16, pregnant, and emancipated by the foster care system.

Out on my own, I moved in with my baby’s father and had 5 more children until his abuse forced me to leave. Homeless, my 6 children and I lived in a park before finding The Dream Center.

Since I was tested at a second grade reading level, I have a lot of work to do before I can try for my GED, but I am determined. I know that if I had a place to go like The Dream Center when I was 16 and fending for myself, my life would not have been such a struggle.

Manuel

Manuel is a single dad of 12 children. His wife passed away from cancer a little over 2 years ago. We first received a call from the social worker because there were no beds in the home for all the children. There was one bunk bed in one of the rooms that 6 kids were sleeping on. Everyone else was sleeping on the floor; Manuel slept on the kitchen floor.

A couple from the church came out to volunteer with us as we delivered what we could to the family. The couple felt like no one in the home should be without a bed and they purchased beds and bedding for everyone in the home. The social worker went to inspect the home and was amazed with what she saw. Their case was closed.