Hope South Florida

Transforming a Community

Our Mission: Providing hope for the homeless and hurting in our community through services and partnerships with the Christian community.

Our Goal: To bring about transformation in the lives of the homeless and hurting through the provision of housing solutions and support services; and to serve as a guiding partner in transforming, educating, and bringing the faith community into relationship with those served.

There are times in every person's life when there is cause to doubt. As events, trials and even people begin to strip away the safety and comfort we long to have. While it is darkest just before the dawn, many worry that dawn may come too late. For the 100+ families that face homelessness on a daily basis, this is a valid concern.

But we say hold on to HOPE.

HOPE South Florida is the answer to many families in our community that have no where or one to turn to. Every day we are blessed to be a part of restoring hope for these families. To see the transformation that occurs in the lives of men, women and children as their night turns into day.

HOPE South Florida is the very answer to a long unswerving hold onto God's call to serve the homeless and hurting in our city. From the humble beginnings as The Shepherd's Way, there were many faithful people who held on to the hope that collectively we could make a difference.

Transforming a community begins in the HOPE brought by the many churches that have rallied together to address the growing issue of homelessness.

Transforming a community is seen in the HOPE for the thousands of men, woman and children who are homeless everyday in Broward County.

Together we are building HOPE, Housing and Community.

Join us. We're just getting started.

Hope Central
Faith in Action
The Shepherd's Way
God's Little Lambs
Aces
TasteHOPE Café

In partnership with various other faith-based/community based organizations, Hope Central provides a community one-stop center for families facing housing and economic crisis in their lives. Through partnerships HOPE South Florida provides homeless services, housing, a food pantry, mass meals, budget counseling, daycare, and spiritual support.

Located in the 33311 zip codes, one of the poorest zip codes in Florida, there is an urgent need for the services Hope Central provides. The current statists are overwhelming and have continued to worsen during the current economic struggles. In the area surrounding Hope Central the number of people with income below 50% poverty level is 14.3%, almost 3-times the current percent in Florida, and over 50% of the households in the area, both renters and owners, have critical housing needs as defined by the state.

Joining Hope Central?

If you or your organization is interested in seeing the spiritual, cultural or social renewal of Fort Lauderdale we'd invite you to consider joining the partnership of Hope Central. Joining the partnership provides an opportunity for your organization to share in the collective mission to care for homeless and hurting families. As renovations begin there will be growing opportunities for partners to join us in providing services to families seeking help. Benefits for Hope Central Partners include:

Cost sharing space / rent free
Capacity for ministry services / growth potential
Location near downtown Fort Lauderdale/ where the need is
Potential for true partnership / long-term leases

The Faith-In-Action Community Housing program coordinates faith-based/community-based organizations to provide temporary "safe housing" for those families who are unable to enter into mainstream homeless programs because of a lack of availability. The program provides a safety net for families in need and works to ensure that children do not have to sleep on the street because area shelters are full.

Partnering with over 45 churches in our community, the Faith-In-Action program serves as emergency overnight shelter for those families who would otherwise have no where else to go.

In close partnership with The Homeless Helpline (211 or 954.563.4357), families are first screened and prioritized according to need. This prioritized waitlist is shared daily with HOPE South Florida case management and appropriate families are accepted.

Serving anywhere from 2 – 7 families a week, the Faith-In-Action program serves as the "front door" for our community's continuum of care. Families seeking emergency shelter must come through this program in order to begin the shelter process.

For a list of participating churches click here.

How It Works

Host Site
A congregation chooses a week to host families. 5pm – 7am daily, Monday evening – Saturday morning.

Volunteers
Volunteers from each congregation provide meals, fellowship and supervised overnight stay.

Transportation
HOPE South Florida staff provides all necessary transportation to and from host congregation.

Shelter
Families are placed into traditional shelter upon availability and a new family is admitted into the program.

What WE Provide:

Volunteer Training

Intake/Interview/Prescreening of all Families

Drug Testing

Air Mattresses, Linens, Toiletries

Set Up and Take Down

Holistic Case Management

What HOST Site Provides:

Volunteer Coordination

Dinner

Fellowship

Overnight Supervision

Breakfast

Bag Lunch

While in the Faith-In-Action program families are equipped with the tools and documentation needed for traditional shelter.

Families are provided with state issued identification, children's birth certificates, medical records and social security cards if necessary. Families are also given an organizational tool kit, The Road to Renewal to help better organize and prepare essential documents.

TasteHOPE Café, HOPE South Florida's compassion cafe, will exist to bring about transformation in the lives of homeless and hurting families through quality accessible food on a 'pay what you can' basis. With an ever changing menu and no fixed prices, guests pay what they can or are encouraged to volunteer their time. TasteHOPE Café will develop in stages, launching from our current shared meal program.

Build Hope: By working together with local Christian churches, meals are currently shared 3-4 evenings a week throughout Broward County. Through shared meals, these evenings are used to transform, educate, and bring the faith community into relationship with those served.

Mobile Café: In the near future HOPE South Florida will launch its TasteHOPE Mobile Café which will transform any space into a cafe for the night. Complete with cafe decor, tables, chairs, and supplies, TasteHOPE Mobile is a mobile compassion cafe for the community providing one meal per day, 5-7 days a week.

Build Community: TasteHOPE Mobile provides an opportunity for volunteers to share meals in a safe and caring environment. This can send a powerful message and show that we are different - working together and crossing denominational barriers, the Christian community exhibits the love of Christ in practical ways. We set the tone by how we set the table.

TasteHOPE Café: As a storefront cafe, TasteHOPE Café will serve as a community gathering space that provides food, both for those who are socially minded and economically challenged. Partnering with local community gardens, restaurants, and businesses, TasteHOPE Café will serve dishes utilizing fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables. Intrinsic to the pay as you can model are several payment options, including volunteer hours including volunteer hours - empowered guests begin to take ownership in their cafe.

The Shepherd's Way, HOPE South Florida's emergency shelter, encompasses 11 apartment style units and the support services needed to assist homeless families to regain independence. Families receive case management, life/parenting skills training, employment assistance, and financial planning. The Shepherd's Way II consists of 4 units of transitional housing and is made available to graduate families.

Depending on the needs of the family, The Shepherd's Way employs a two-pronged approach that will either connect members to our housing program or our temporary shelter component, where families may reside for up to 9 months. In our attempts to Build Hope, Housing and Community, regardless of the path chosen, all families and staff engage in our Five Stages for Restoration of HOPE:

Stage 1: Develop a Connection (Relationship)

Stage 2: Identify Barriers (Discovery)

Stage 3: Design Case Plan to Resolve Barriers and Create Goals (Development)

Stage 4: Implement and Evaluate Case Plan (Reflection)

Stage 5: Self-Sustainability and Transition into Independence (Achievement)

The "main entrance" into The Shepherd's Way is through Faith-In-Action, a program designed to help take families off the streets, provide them with "safe housing" and connect them with much-needed resources in the community. Passing through these doors gives members access to other networks, all of which will provide wrap-around services based on the individual need of families.