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Page 6 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 2023 Housing Families Inc. In Case You Missed It: 2022 in Review “W ith your support, in 2022 we expanded our programs, grew our team, and served more individuals and families than ever before! “This year we served 3,295 adults and children! Will you help us serve more members of our community in 2023?” Housing Families Inc. (HFI) News & Program Updates GREAT Youth & Families Program: The GREAT (Growth, Resilience, Empowerment, Acceptance, Trust) Youth & Families Program (GYFP) is our therapeutic counseling and afterschool program for children, youths and parents! This year GYFP has grown their team to support even more families through tutoring, clinical mental health support, food access, enrichment and more. GYFP has furthered their partnerships with Shelter Music Boston and Nature Linc to provide additional skills, knowledge and experiences for children and youths in the program. In 2022, GYFP served 52 youths and children and 45 parents/ adults. In the coming year, the GYFP team is working to double program participation! Volunteer Alex Wu organizes the Hub. Individual Shelter: In 2021 HFI opened a greatly needed Individual Shelter in Malden to support adults in the region. This is a critical resource for the community – HFI currently has 390+ individuals on the shelter waitlist. The committed and talented Individual Shelter team has served 53 guests since opening and worked with 20 individuals to secure permanent housing. And, as always, Housing Families prioritizes both physical and mental health. Through the assistance of generous donors and carefully trained staff , HFI provides quality food and mental health resources to Individual Shelter clients, including recreational activities, to get guests involved with the community. This year HFI made 252+ referrals to support services and provided 23,205 meals to shelter guests thanks to partners at Bread of Life, The Food Drive and local restaurants. Homelessness Prevention & Legal Services Program:Offi ce of Housing Stability: This spring HFI’s Homelessness Prevention and Legal Services Program (HPLSP) partnered with the City of Malden to create the Offi ce of Housing Stability. This allowed HFI to expand the services it offers to Malden residents. HPLSP Chelsea Office: HFI Generous donations from Malden Catholic High School partnered with the City of Chelsea’s Department of Housing & Community Development to open HFI’s new HPLSP Chelsea Offi ce, which held its grand opening it July. Chelsea residents seeking legal services and/or fi nancial assistance may contact HFI’s Chelsea Offi ce at probonolegalteam@housingfamilies.org. Staff are multilingual in Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin & Haitian Creole. In 2022 HPLSP served 2,236 individuals, as well as 1,000 families, and prevented 515 evictions! Community Resource Hub: In August HFI’s Community Resource Hub marked its one-year anniversary! The Hub off ers nutritious, culturally appropriate food and grocery assistance for clients in HFI’s programs. They CRAFT FAIR and FLEA MARKET Indoor Craft Fair and Flea Market Knights of Columbus Council 1829 57 Appleton Street, Saugus MA, 01906 Saturday, February 18, 2023 9AM - 3PM Snow date, February 25 Vendors / Table $25 Refreshments * Cash Bar * Raffles To reserve a table or more info please call Paul Giannetta 978-239-1392 Runners at the 5K starting line (Photo by Allan Dines) Shelter Music Boston plays music with a GYFP student. Former shelter guest John with his case managers as he moves into his permanent home also provide child care, hygiene and cleaning supplies, as well as mobile support serving clients directly to their homes. Since January of 2022, the Housing Families Community Resource Hub served 96 families, distributing 555 bags of groceries across 322 appointments or deliveries. Clinical Services: This year HFI expanded its Clinical Mental Health support to serve individuals and families across HFI’s programs. HFI’s clinical services include individual counseling, a women’s group, and caregiver support services, and HFI plans to further expand these services in 2023. Annual Housing Families 5K: On November 12, HFI held its Annual Housing Families 5K, powered by BOND and presented by United Rentals. The Annual Housing Families 5K furthers HFI’s vision of housing equity and well-being for all, raises awareness for National Homelessness Awareness Week and brings together the local community for a fun day. Participants joined us at the race event at River’s Edge Park, as well as virtually, to raise just under $68,000 for HFI programs. “We are so grateful to all the participants and sponsors who made the day a success!” If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for the 2023 Annual Housing Families 5K, email communications@housingfamilies.org for more details.

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