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Nonprofits unite to turn $10K donation into $40K to help Brevard families avoid homelessness
MELBOURNE, Florida, September 26, 2017 - On September 20, 2017 the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation presented Family Promise of Brevard with a $10K donation that may open the door to another $30K in funds for Brevard families on the brink of homelessness. These funds have the potential to be quadrupled, which will allow up to 40 Brevard County families to sleep under their own roofs instead of in emergency shelters or on the streets.
According to money guru Dave Ramsey's website, 70 percent of American families live paycheck to paycheck and are one unforeseen emergency from being in dire straits. With government funding for such programs shrinking, the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation's donation could not come at a better time.
The funds will help families move into housing by covering move-in costs and security deposits and prevent evictions by paying back rent, stated Tara Pagliarini, executive director for Family Promise of Brevard.
"For families who aren't able to move into housing because of the financial barriers or they're not able to maintain housing because they have fallen behind, this is like a lifeline for those families to obtain or remain stably housed," Pagliarini said.
Moreover, the donation will aid families who may be turned down for government funded programs. Family Promise of Brevard comes to the aid of Space Coast residents who often fall through cracks in the system and find themselves ineligible for aid they desperately need to remain in affordable housing.
"Part of what makes this program unique is that most of the other programs in the county to help either prevent homelessness or rehouse families are primarily government funded, which means that they have some very specific limitations," said Mark Sexton, program services coordinator for Family Promise of Brevard. "There's large gaps in our community that just can't be helped by those funds and this is specifically designed to fill those gaps to take those families that otherwise don't qualify for help to get back into that stable system of movement. And it really allows us to customize it to what the needs are of those families."
The $10K donation from the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation is being matched with a $10K grant from an organization called Help Us Move In, Inc. (HUMI) located in Washington that that helps families facing housing crises. Family Promise of Brevard is one of only 10 nationwide affiliates to receive the grant as part of a national partnership between Family Promise and Help Us Move In, Inc. The grant will be used to launch a program for sustainable prevention and rehousing for families experiencing homelessness.
"We are dedicated to our community and honored to be able to assist Family Promise in helping the families of Brevard, said Louise McClean, chair of the Brevard's Children in Need Committee and president of the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation. "I say all the time, it only takes a little bit from a lot of us to make a difference."
The donation and HUMI grant will enable Family Promise of Brevard to expand their efforts and keep families from needing emergency shelter in the first place. The nonprofit launched a prevention and diversion program called Hand Up in January that has already helped more than 250 households.
The initial $10K donation from Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation has the potential to be quadrupled. Family Promise of Brevard's goal is to take the $10K from the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation and the $10K matching grant from HUMI and double it through $20K in community donations by September of 2018. The nonprofit will have the opportunity to do the exact same thing next year because the HUMI grant is a two year opportunity, potentially bringing another $40K to families in need in 2019.
"It's awesome!" said Antoinette, a family member helped by Family Promise of Brevard. "My main concern is for my kids. My son has been asking me, 'When are we going to go home?' So it is awesome to be able to tell him we will have a place to call home again!"
Pagliarini has witnessed instances when funding an $85 electric bill has prevented a family from being evicted because housing occupants can face eviction if they don't have power. She's found that a number of families are living beyond their means, so when a major life crisis happens they don't have the resources to cover their expenses and are at risk of losing their housing. Pagliarini notes that this is in part due to some families expending well over 30 percent of their income on housing costs, an issue she believes is affecting households across the nation.
"We're talking about families that are working every day," Pagliarini said. "Often, both parents are working, sometimes working three jobs, and they're still just not able to save up enough for life's emergencies that happen, and so this really helps."
Pagliarini believes that the community is the answer to solving homelessness and the Space Coast Association of REALTORS® couldn't agree more. As community members and local REALTORS®, the Association takes pride in being strong proponents for affordable housing and our foundation, which is dedicated to helping children experiencing homelessness.
"I hope that this initiative creates a habit of giving from the community and we know that the community is very generous and philanthropic and that they can be part of the solution," Pagliarini said. "I'm excited about it. We see families who are impacted by it every day and they're so appreciative of what the community can do that they are then in turn giving back to the community."
The Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation is a nonprofit formed last year in response to the success of the Space Coast Association of REALTORS® Brevard's Children in Need Committee. Through ardent fundraising efforts, the committee raised $93,000 in 2016 and more than $400,000 since its founding in 2011. In addition to monetary funds, the foundation also gathers resources, including prom dresses, coats, hygiene and sanitary items, school supplies, refurbished laptops, bus passes and emergency food resources for children with no permanent place to call home.
Resources and funds gathered by the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation enable the more than 2,260 children experiencing homelessness in Brevard County to learn and grow with confidence and the local government to generate new programs, such emergency shelter planning and reduced summer recreation fees.
Contributions to the HUMI fund can be made online at www.familypromiseofbrevard.org. Please type "HUMI Funds" in the memo area when making donations.
For more information about Brevard's Children in Need visit brevardschildreninneed.org. For more information about Family Promise of Brevard visit familypromiseofbrevard.org.
About Brevard's Children in Need
Brevard's Children in Need is a committee that was formed by the Space Coast Association of REALTORS® in 2011 to come to the aid of more than 2,260 Brevard County children who have no permanent place to call home. With our partners, the Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront Hotel and the Cocoa Beach Area Hotel and Lodging Association, Brevard's Children in Need holds fundraisers to help homeless children through the Brevard Schools Foundation and Take Stock in Children Program. Brevard's Children in Need is devoted to raising money and increasing community awareness while improving quality of life through providing transportation, school supplies, clothing, tutoring and summer recreation for Brevard's most vulnerable homeless individuals. Since its formation, Brevard's Children in Need has raised more than $400k for Brevard's homeless children and led to the founding of the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation.
About Family Promise of Brevard
Family Promise of Brevard, Inc. is a 501 (C)(3)non-profit organization whose mission is to address homelessness in our community and put families on a path toward long-term stability. Through their Interfaith Hospitality Network of congregations and community collaborations, they offer solutions to ending and preventing family homelessness in Brevard County. Their goal is to strengthen our community by helping homeless families with children remain intact while they transition toward self-sufficiency. Since 2013, Family Promise of Brevard has served low-income and homeless families via multiple programs that focus on emergency shelter, housing stabilization, and prevention and diverting homelessness.
About the Space Coast Association of REALTORS®
Since 1959, the Space Coast Association of REALTORS® has been a professional trade association that provides services to our local REALTOR® community. Our membership base is comprised of more than 4,100 REALTORS® and Business Partner members that service Brevard County and adhere to a strict Code of Ethics when working with one another and the general public. The Space Coast Association of REALTORS® takes an active part in community programs and pursues projects our members support to further real estate interests. The protection of private property rights is always our top priority.
For more information, contact Christine Edwards at 321-242-2211 or via email at christine.edwards@space321.com.
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The Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation presented Family Promise of Brevard with a $10K donation to help the nonprofit expand its efforts to prevent families from experiencing homelessness in Brevard County.
On September 20, the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation presented Family Promise of Brevard with a $10K donation to aid families on the brink of homelessness.
On September 20, the Space Coast REALTORS® Charitable Foundation presented Family Promise of Brevard with a $10K donation to help Space Coast families avoid homelessness. Through matching funds and community donations, the $10K can be quadrupled to $40K in the coming year.