This March we’re launching Connect, our new program to help homeless women transition off the streets of Portland. Connect will provide space and programming for up to 16 women to get the help they need to end their homelessness and find a job and/or housing.
Volunteers from Hillsboro Vineyard Church packed welcome gifts for the first wave of Connect women.
“We’re so excited about this new facility,” says Executive Director Eric Bauer. “It’s the first time in 64 years we’ve had a place to put ladies from the street. We’re looking to encourage them, to bless them, to bring hope to them, to bring care to them, and to give them a new start in life.”
The volunteer group then left the care kits on the nightstands for the women.
Recent renovations at our Burnside Shelter created space on our second floor for Connect as well as a new women’s dayroom that will give ladies a chance to get off the street during the day and into a safe, relationship-driven environment with an emphasis on loving conversations and activities. We also received a generous grant that will allow us to fund the program for the next three years.
SEE ALSO: Our Link program helps homeless men, like Ron, transition off the streets. Read his story here.Â
Services for homeless women are extremely lacking in Portland, just one reason we are excited to open our Connect program next month. As we finish the final preparations for Connect and the dayroom, please keep this program in your thoughts and prayers.
And remember – none of this would be possible without the continued support of friends like you. If you are interested in donating to help hurting people in need, including the homeless women that will be joining Connect, please visit www.PortlandRescueMission.org/Give today.