“Once we got to Community of Hope, we were no longer treading in the water. We could finally breathe and swim to the other side.” It was finally a new beginning for Nichole Beavers-Outlaw, her fiancé, Patrick Woodward, and their five children when they were connected to Community of Hope’s (COH) temporary housing program at Girard Street Apartments, our temporary housing program which provides apartment-style emergency shelter for 20 homeless families with children. Nichole shared that when they arrived at Girard Street, they knew “it was a new start for us.” That new start meant stabilizing support while at Girard Street but also meant that they found a new apartment for the longer-term.

Charles Barrett and his ten-year-old son were given a fresh start when they were introduced to Community of Hope, where they received support from two of our programs. After losing his job and falling behind on his rent, Charles was evicted and became homeless. With the advice from his sister, he reached out to the Virginia Williams Family Resource Center and was placed at one of Community of Hope’s temporary housing sites. Charles noted, “It was embarrassing when we got to the shelter, but then it was a relief that we had somewhere to stay.”

Maya Brice is a woman of hope.