In this economic environment, there are more homeless families and children living on the streets, in their cars, or in and out of missions in L.A.'s Skid Row.   With few job opportunities, low wages, higher rents and foreclosures, Beyond Shelter is also now seeing families who have never experienced homelessness before.

Homeless families face overwhelming barriers that, without assistance and support, impede their return to permanent housing.  For the past two decades, almost all efforts to confront family homelessness, both public and private, have focused on providing families with emergency shelter and/or transitional housing.  While these services are imperative for families in crisis, they do not offer a long-term solution to the escalating problem. 

Over the past two decades, Beyond Shelter has successfully helped over 4,000 homeless families move into permanent housing - including approximately 10,000 children.  That's 200 families every year for 20 years! 

Over the next year we expect 1,000 families, with approximately 2,500 children, to come to Beyond Shelter for help getting off the streets.  And, this is only an estimate.

To ensure these families survive this crisis, Beyond Shelter is instituting a one-year $500,000 Emergency Campaign to Aid Homeless Families in L.A.

These funds will be used for the following:

Crisis Intervention & Emergency Services:
Homeless families with no place to sleep that night are assisted in accessing emergency shelter, hotel/motel vouchers, meals and meal vouchers, transportation, clothing, children's services, and referrals for emergency health care and other special needs.  Caring case managers help families to establish a plan with short-term goals and objectives.  As needed, families are connected with domestic violence services, substance abuse treatment, longer-term health and mental health care, and legal aid.

Specialized Services for Children in Homeless Families:
Case managers address the needs of children and youth in the family, including assessments and referrals for medical, developmental, emotional, or behavioral issues; screening and intervention for child abuse or neglect; and the provision of clothing, diapers, infant formula, and school supplies, as needed.  Child Development Specialists also conduct "home visits" to shelters, hotels, and other temporary housing to monitor children with special needs, to provide parenting education and assist parents in learning how to identify and address their children's needs, to ensure successful outcomes for the health and well-being of homeless children.

Assistance to Move Back into Housing:
Homeless families are referred to Beyond Shelter's "Housing First" Program for Homeless Families by 70 different organizations throughout L.A. County, including emergency shelters, domestic violence shelters, drug treatment programs, and transitional housing programs.  Once enrolled, homeless families are assisted in identifying affordable units and negotiating leases with landlords, overcoming poor credit, histories of eviction, or other barriers the family may have to moving into permanent housing, obtaining rent subsidies, move-in funds and furnishings.

Social Services Support to Help Families Rebuild their Lives:
Once families move back into permanent housing in residential neighborhoods located throughout L.A. County, Beyond Shelter provides home-based case management for six to twelve months to help families stabilize and prevent a recurrence of homelessness. Case Managers visit families in their home, helping to solve problems that exist or may arise, and providing assistance with employment and vocational services, specialized children's services such as health screenings and developmental assessments, enrolling children in school or child care, and connecting families with services available in their new community to meet longer-term needs.

$1,000 is the average cost per family served through Beyond Shelter programs (beyond Federal, State and Local funding for ongoing operations).  This one-year/$500,000 crisis campaign can help approximately 500 homeless families in crisis through a variety of vital services and programs - with the outcome being an end to their homeless crisis.  These include crisis intervention for homeless families on the streets, the provision of emergency shelter, assistance in obtaining affordable housing, move-in funds for permanent housing, assistance in obtaining employment, and a wide variety of specialized services for children and youth.

Funds will help prevent a long-term crisis for families becoming homeless over the next year. Without the success of this Emergency Campaign to aid homeless families in L.A. more than 1,000 families will be living in shelters, in their cars or on the streets.

Increasingly, shelters are turning families away because they are filled to capacity. At the same time, Beyond Shelter has been experiencing an influx of homeless families and children who have never experienced homelessness before. In the next two years, we can expect a major increase in families that will come to Beyond Shelter for help getting off the streets. The Emergency Campaign to Aid Homeless Families in L.A. will help ensure that all these families are provided the services and resources that can help them back into housing at rents they can afford.

Through the Emergency Campaign, we plan to raise $500,000 in charitable gifts and pledges. The campaign will seek the generous support of board members, friends of Beyond Shelter, foundations, community-service organizations and local businesses.

This is a 1-year campaign. It will begin in January 2009 and end in January 2010.

Certainly, particularly if there is a particular program that is of special interest to you. However, we've found that many of our donors wish to support Beyond Shelter's programs and services in general, as all are important.

We greatly appreciate your ongoing support of our annual giving efforts. Your gifts have helped to support Beyond Shelter's ongoing programs. Because the need for our programs and services has increased beyond our current capacity, we have developed the Emergency Campaign to help meet this increased need. We urge Beyond Shelter friends to continue to support the operation of our programs with their annual gifts, while at the same time considering a "stretch" contribution or pledge to the Emergency Campaign.

All donors will be gratefully acknowledged in Beyond Shelter publications related to the Campaign and on the agency's website. Gifts to Beyond Shelter's Emergency Campaign to Aid Homeless Families in L.A. may be made in your name, in '"memory of," or in "honor of" a loved one. And, certainly those who wish to remain anonymous in their giving will have their request honored.

The success of this campaign requires the special generosity of all who believe in the importance of Beyond Shelter's mission in alleviating homelessness and poverty. Donors are encouraged to consider pledging generous gifts (gifts of $5,000 - $25,000 may be paid in two installments). A signed statement of intent or pledge form may be used to indicate the size and timing of the pledge payments.

Many companies match employee contributions to Beyond Shelter. Donors are encouraged to check with their employers to determine if a matching gifts program exists. If so, please notify us at the time of your gift.

Gifts to the Emergency Campaign are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

Our desire is to raise even more money than what is called for in the campaign. Additional funds that are raised will help us expand our vital services into a second year.

Beyond Shelter's programs are financed through a combination of government funding, corporate and foundation support, and ongoing fundraising efforts.

Questions about the Emergency Campaign to Aid Homeless Families in L.A. may be directed to Tanya Tull, President/CEO or Maxine Moshay, Director of Development, at 213-252-0772.