Friendly House Inc

Programs: Friendly house preschool is based on the belief that children need an individualized early childhood education program that focuses on each child's social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development. It is a mixed-model school that includes head start services, portland children's levy-funded slots and families that pay on a sliding fee scale. We provide an environment for children's growing social interactions, and promote cooperation and problem solving skills, as well as kindergarten readiness. It is a half-day educational program for children ages three five. Children learn and play together under the supervision of experienced staff. The program offers a meal and snack during each class session, developmental screenings and assessment, and parenting support. Friendly house playgroup provides a place for parents/guardians of children from birth to three years old to meet and make friends. It is an opportunity for children and their parents or caregivers to explore a stimulating sensory environment and develop social and motor skills. It takes place in our preschool classroom and is well-supplied with educational materials, role-play and dress up areas, reading nooks, discovery tables, and building toys. A wide variety of activities is available to children and their parents such as painting, water and sand play, circle time, snack and large motor play in our gym. Friendly house after school meets the needs of families whose parents are working or in school. It provides high-quality, affordable care utilizing a sliding-scale and scholarships and operates from 7:00 am until school begins and immediately after school until 6:00 p. M. , as well as all day on most school closure days. We serve families who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness by providing full scholarships. After school engages children in age-appropriate enrichment activities such as art, science, homework help, sports, field trips and free-choice time. Children also have the opportunity to participate in clubs like photography, theater, gardening and music without additional cost for families. The program has a 12:1 child to teacher ratio. After school and its qualified and dedicated staff are certified by the childcare division of oregon's employment department. It serves 1/3 of the chapman school population. During the summer months, after school becomes a day camp with themes such as "ring of fire: exploring oregon's geography. " it operates from 7:00 a. M. To 6:00 p. M. And is replete with hands-on projects, field trips, summer crafts and sports. Scholarships are provided for qualified families. 2017 accomplishments:173 children ages 3 to 11 participated in our school year programs. During summer we served 143 children, 26% of whom were from communities of color and many of whom attended from early morning until 6:00 p. M. Childrens programs operates on a sliding fee scale, but also awarded 72 scholarships to very low-income and homeless families. Sixty-eight percent of children in our preschool were on track for development of gross motor, fine motor, language and literacy, cognitive and social/emotional skills. Seventy-five percent of children attended 80% of school days. One hundred-twenty-nine students were enrolled in after school. Ninety-five percent participated in homework club so they could complete their homework while their parents were at work. Ninety-eight children participated in clubs such as cooking, drama, music and science.

community services: friendly house serves marginalized community members through a variety of programming, support and volunteer engagement. Our senior program takes a strengths-based approach to developing and accessing resources to assist older adults to live independently in their own homes. Our information & assistance specialists take inquiries over the phone or in person on topics such as how to navigate complex systems like public housing and medicare or medicaid, or to create appointments for legal assistance, tax help and transportation. Case managers work individually with clients to help reduce isolation (such as placing "friendly visitor" volunteers with them or encouraging them to come in for an exercise class), provide housekeeping and bathing assistance, connect them to resources for food shopping and meal delivery and encourage healthy living. These services are free. Sage metro portland enhances the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transexual adults ages 60+. It provides a range of services, including education, advocacy, outreach, resource development and case management. The sage housing committee developed a housing guide to help their peers assess the level of lgbt-friendliness of housing communities in portland. Sage metro portland provides social events and outings, diversity trainings for the various professions that work with this population, and a bi-annual "gay & grey expo. " it is an affiliate of sage, a national advocacy organization. 2017 accomplishments: in our senior program, 98% of older adults served through case management were able to continue to live in their own homes and did not need to move into a higher level of care. We supported 774 older adults with activities such as tax preparation, legal advice, completing housing applications and medicare counseling. Ninety-six percent of survey respondents reported that their quality of life had increased or stayed the same as a result of our involvement. Ninety percent of transportation services were utilized by non-english speakers and 21% of our case managed clients identified as lgbt. Sage metro portland utilized volunteers to provide 1240 hours of activities such as educating the public about the special needs of lgbt older adults, advocating for supportive housing and organizing social events. Twenty-two lgbt older adults received services to continue living in their own homes. Eighty-one percent of survey respondents felt an increased sense of community and 85% reported a greater knowledge of available resources.

community recreation and education features a gym, fitness room and an internet center. It offers a quarterly schedule of activities and classes with a focus on marginalized people. Activities and classes include community nights, a music circle, lifelong learning lectures, and forums and wellness classes for older adults. Participation is on a free or sliding-fee basis. There were 59,849 visits to community recreation and education by people ages 0 to 99. Activities included basketball, dodgeball, strength and endurance training and community building events. There was a 15% increase in the number of disabled members, and a 6% increase in 60+ members. Sixty scholarships were awarded to low-income people who wanted to become members.

volunteer:volunteers were a vital component of our success in 2016-2017, with support from local groups and businesses, faith based organizations, neighbors and other community members. Friendly house hosted over 460 volunteers who contributed 5,548 hours, not including sage metro portland, which are tracked seperately. Volunteers were instrumental in the academic success of children in our after school and preschool programs through tutoring and homework help. They were integral to supporting older adults living independently through our friendly visitor program. They served on our board, made improvements to our facilities and ran our events.