As many as 50 families in a year overcome homelessness with help from Family Renew Community's housing programs. But the day these families move from our residential campuses into houses and apartments in the community is not the end of their relationship with Family Renew Community. Our Beyond Homelessness initiative keeps us connected, for their benefit and ours.
Beyond Homelessness is not a program unto itself, but rather a collection of activities that enhance Family Renew's transitional housing with an eye toward ensuring continued success for formerly homeless families and tracking long-term outcomes.
Primarily, the initiative gives our former resident families continued or renewed access to case management services. This is known as after-care case management. Though parents leave Family Renew with new knowledge, skills and abilities to cope with what life throws their way, they may still be vulnerable. If families once again find themselves with unmet needs or obstacles to making ends meet, after-care case management allows us to step in to provide or link them with help to avert a new housing crisis.
Collection of information about the housing stability and economic well-being of our formerly homeless families also is conducted under the umbrella of Beyond Homelessness. Family Renew Community monitors the status of all families who have exited our transitional housing since Jan. 1, 2017. Family Renew twice a year checks the Homeless Management Information System maintained by the Volusia-Flagler County Coalition for the Homeless to determine whether families have accessed homelessness services. Once a year, Family Renew surveys former residents regarding their status. Through this combination of methods, Family Renew has determined 89 percent to 95 percent of these families are in stable housing.
The Beyond Homelessness initiative also encourages ongoing communication between Family Renew Community and formerly homeless families who are thriving. The initiative plans to host an annual gathering of our formerly homeless families and the homeless families we are currently serving in our transitional programs for fellowship, inspiration and celebration of success. The first of these gatherings, a picnic at Sunrise Park in Holly Hill, took place Nov. 16, 2019, in conjunction with Family Renew Community's 30th anniversary festivities. Because of the pandemic, we were unable to hold a gathering in 2020 or 2021. We are hoping, though, to be able to get together in the fall of 2022.
