News - Page 6 of 14 - HomeStretch

Home Makeover: HomeStretch-Style

As a member of the Rotary Club of Alpharetta, Glennette “Cookie” Haynes is a great friend to HomeStretch. Her charity, Orphan-Foundation, believes ‘spaces that heighten a sense of spirituality, wellness, and confidence nurture the soul’. Each month, the Orphan-Foundation asks its partners to contribute to home renovations for low-income families. This month, they selected HomeStretch as a recipient of this valuable service. The renovation was a resounding success, and Cookie was delighted at the number of people who answered the call to help. To her, it was confirmation that the foundation’s ministry of inspiring hope through design is making a difference. A few weeks ago, one of our HomeStretch families moved into the beautifully renovated townhome. They are so grateful and say the den/living room is their favorite part of the house. Apparently, the kids were quite surprised that they had all new furniture! The father called HomeStretch after move-in and said, “I am just amazed! I don’t know what we did to receive such favor, but thank you!”

December 20, 2016 1 Comment

Thanksgiving Blessings from All Ages

Thanksgiving Blessings from All Ages Cooper (age 4) is a regular at HomeStretch LifeSkills classes. His mother, Carrie, is a volunteer Youth Development small group leader for the LifeSkills program and often brings Cooper along. He enjoys participating in the Structured Play sessions with the HomeStretch preschoolers. The sessions are more play than structure, which Cooper loves. So, when he created a Thankfulness Turkey in his preschool class, his mom was thrilled to discover that he included HomeStretch, and the fun time he has with new friends, as one of his blessings. We couldn’t help but share this sweet story with you. We are so glad Cooper is thankful for his time with us, because we are certainly thankful for Cooper and Carrie!

December 20, 2016 No Comments

From HomeStretch to Home Owner – A Q&A Session

Simply put, HomeStretch is about people. It’s about helping people get answers to their questions and solutions to homelessness. This month, we present a Q & A with Brittany, one of our residents, who took an incredible journey – from homeless to homeowner! QUESTION: Why did you decide to apply for a home with Habitat? It’s a big process, isn’t it? ANSWER: My HomeStretch mentor and now friend, Leigh Ann, suggested that I apply for the program. I had reached many of my financial goals with HomeStretch, but I wasn’t sure if purchasing a house was something I could handle. It turns out, it was one of the best decisions I have made. The process was long and hard, but most things that are worth having take work. And I was determined to do whatever I needed to do to provide the very best I could for my children. Q: How did your HomeStretch Family Coordinator, Rachelle and your HomeStretch Mentor, Leigh Ann help you? A: First, they helped me see my situation for what it was and to take a close look at how I got there. Some problems were due to circumstance or things that were out of my control, but a good deal was due to decisions that were within my control. Once I realized this, I could accept the help of others. HomeStretch brought amazing people into my corner, like Rachelle and Leigh Ann. They’ve stuck with me, through the ups and downs – and we had lots of both. They pushed me to do better when I wanted to make excuses and I’m forever thankful God placed them in my life. Q: What is your favorite thing about being a homeowner? A: I enjoy seeing my kids enjoy their home. They know that this is ours. We are going to be here for a long time and they love that. That’s my favorite part. I also love decorating! Q: What advice would you give to someone applying for a new home through Habitat? A: Pray about it first. Be honest. Believe that you can do it and surround yourself with people who believe it, too. Stick with it and never give up. Yes, they will ask you for the same paperwork 20 different times – it’s okay. Don’t complain. Don’t be defensive if someone has some constructive criticism to offer. Be a filter, not a sponge. Take what you can use and leave the rest. And remember that you are your children’s first example. Let them see how much you love them and how hard you work for them. And always, always know your worth. Thank you, Brittany, for your wise words and your courage. We are proud of you!

November 14, 2016 No Comments

2016 BBQ in the Burbs

On November 6, HomeStretch hosted the third annual BBQ in the Burbs at scenic Little River Farm in Milton. More than 200 of our family members, friends, and neighbors joined us for the festivities. We ate BBQ right off the smoker, enjoyed cold beverages, and danced to music from Banks and Shane. Generous sponsors included UPS, Smith & Howard, Innovative Foam Technology, Roswell Presbyterian Church, plus two additional anonymous sponsors. Thank you to event chairman Darrin Cohen, donors, volunteers and all who came to help raise funds for HomeStretch.

November 12, 2016 No Comments

Cox Enterprises Volunteers

Many thanks to the employees from Cox Enterprises, Inc. who donated their time and talents to make our Millbrook community a better place for the HomeStretch families. We appreciate you!

November 12, 2016 No Comments

HomeStretch Families Get Smart

HomeStretch Mentor Paula Canaday-Daeke recently invited our resident families to attend the Dave Ramsey Smart Conference at North Point Community Church. Dave, author of the bestselling book Financial Peace, headlined this fantastic event, along with other dynamic speakers. His popular programs provide common sense financial education and empowerment for people across the country. Some of the families came away from the event with these reflections: “The Conference was way more than I expected. The variety of topics and information energetically presented was life changing. Thank you for the opportunity to be in the presence of so many gifted people.” – Susan “I had an amazing time at the Smart Conference. Outside of Dave Ramsey, Les Parrot’s talk on relationships helped me understand my relationship with my son as he grows to be a young man. He is truly a master communicator. I didn’t expect to learn so much from him. A huge thank you to Paula for thinking of us!” – Amy “What an awesome experience! This was probably one of the most inspiring events I have ever been to. I learned so much about how important it is to live and hold on to your dreams.” – Kimberlee “Dave Ramsey always brings something to look forward to. His program showed me how important it is to keep track of spending. It was a lot to take in but I thoroughly enjoyed it.” – Donna

November 12, 2016 No Comments

National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, Nov. 12-20, 2016

This year, the week before Thanksgiving is National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week. It is a time for us to think about what we are thankful for, share our compassion with our neighbors and work toward a world where no one has to experience Hunger and Homelessness. This week gives us a chance to explore the causes and solutions to these very real struggles on both a national level and closer to home: National issues include: Lack of employment opportunities, decrease in available public assistance, lack of affordable health care, domestic violence, mental illness and addiction. Additional Fulton County issues include: Lack of affordable housing, lack of living wage jobs, transportation, women as single parents and cuts to federal programs. Many of Fulton County’s hungry and homeless are families with children. Many factors lead to homelessness for these families, and HomeStretch works to help them uncover the causes and build new lives. HomeStretch, together with community partners in the North Fulton Homeless and Housing Continuum of Care and with many of you, works to meet the needs of the homeless and those at risk of homelessness in our community. But we need your continued support to provide educational training, improve employment skills and opportunities, advocate for affordable housing for our workforce residents, distribute food to the hungry, and reduce hunger and homelessness in our community. Please consider making a gift to HomeStretch by clicking here or support one of our upcoming fundraisers. Your gift does make a difference.

November 12, 2016 No Comments

Better Mentoring

On October 6, sixty active mentors and stakeholders attended the HomeStretch Mentor Workshop at North Point Community Church. Brandon Smith, The Workplace Therapist, guided participants through a presentation on how to become people of influence. He emphasized the ideas of building trust, promoting change, and connecting people to purpose. He also challenged the group to determine what they will, “start, stop, and continue doing” as a takeaway from the session. In the HomeStretch program, each family works with a budget mentor and a family mentor. Historically, the most successful families in our program have healthy mentor relationships. “Mentors are unique in their ability to influence, encourage, and promote healthy change as families pursue stability,” explains HomeStretch Program Director Carol Swan. Given their importance to the HomeStretch model, we are always looking for ways to thank our mentors. The workshop was a way to take our gratitude a step further by helping them more effectively engage with resident families. Carol was thrilled Brandon agreed to lead it. “He gave everyone tools to enhance not only their mentoring relationships, but all relationships.” Each participant took home a copy of Bridges Out of Poverty, thanks to a generous grant from the Roswell United Methodist Church Foundation. Special thanks to North Point Community Church for providing the perfect space for this event.

October 21, 2016 No Comments

RECENT ARTICLES

Home Makeover: HomeStretch-Style

Thanksgiving Blessings from All Ages

From HomeStretch to Home Owner – A Q&A Session

2016 BBQ in the Burbs

Cox Enterprises Volunteers

HomeStretch Families Get Smart

National Hunger & Homelessness Awareness Week, Nov. 12-20, 2016

Better Mentoring

Pages

Quick Links

Get In Touch