Carying Place Incorporated

Programs: Program overview: the carying places' life skills and short-term transitional housing program helps homeless, working families make the transition to adequate, affordable, permanent housing. Currently, the carying place (tcp) can assist up to 10 families at one given time and helped approximately 29 triangle area families annually as they completed our 16 week life skills program. We assist an average of another 900 homelessfamilies and individuals with our referral services annually as well. Ourprogram goal is to see our graduates in housing they can afford, withemployment that pays all of their expenses, and with plans to maintain savings for emergencies (medical care, car repairs, etc). Most importantly families develop the individualized plans and self-confidence needed to sustain their housing long-term. Our families have an average of 2-3 children per family. Families live rent and utility free in a tcp owned apartment during their 16 weeks in the program. Families learn the skills to become self-sufficient and provide a positive contribution to our community. Tcp is the only like skills training and short-term transitional housing program in the cary and western wake county. In 2017, we served 33 women and men and 67 children under the age of 18 within our program. Details of the program: under the direction of our program manager, tcp matches trained adult volunteers with program participants to teach, encourage and celebrate progress in financial management, planning skills and independent housing attainment. Volunteers meet weekly with their designated family over a 16 week period to focus on budgeting, goal setting, and time management. Participants report weekly spending, accomplishments, and challenges to their volunteer team and then create new goals and a planned budget to help guide them in the next week. Participants also practice financial management by contributing to a savings (or escrow) account managed by tcp. In their 4 months at tcp, families pay their monthly bills, contribute to their escrow account, and improve their credit situation which includes making plans for paying off old debts such as evictions. Participants receive their escrow savings at the end of the 16 weeks to help with moving expenses, initial deposits needed for their new home and often have savings for emergencies. Our performance record: since the inception of the program in 1993, we have worked with over 397 families with a near 90% success rate. Tcp measures success in a very specific way - the family completes the program and remains in self-supported housing for at least one year after matriculation from the program into the general society. Data on their success is collected by personal follow-up with the families through staff and volunteers and in our aftercare program. Aftercare programing happens once monthly and is done in a support group manner as well as aftercare support is provided by family caring and graduate volunteer sponsors linked to each family. Aftercare provides financial management resources, ongoing life skills information and moral support to graduate families.