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Who needs
IHN?
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Families
finding themselves suddenly homeless due to natural disasters and
house fires.
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Families
experiencing financial difficulties due to circumstances such as
lack of employment, medical bills, divorce or separation.
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Families
with one or both parents trying to make their way through school.
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Families
who may have underestimated the time and expense of "starting
over."
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(click to
enlarge)
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Evan (aka Mr
Personality)
enjoys a good meal in the
Family Center kitchen |
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“When
we had a bad day, we knew we would have a friendly face to come “home”
to. We cannot thank you enough for that…”
Former
Guests |
What is
the IHN referral and intake process?
Interfaith
Hospitality Network can serve families whose members:
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Do not have
an active drug or alcohol addiction (chemical free for 30
days)
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Do not have
an untreated mental illness (are complying with effective medication
and/or treatment recommendations)
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Are not
dealing with a current domestic violence problem
When clients
call us or a referral is received, we explain our program to the head of
the family and conduct a basic phone screen. An appointment is
made for an intake, for which one form of photo identification is needed
for a police check.
Spiderman
and friends
We are able to
do intakes on weekdays. If the intake is completed before 2pm, the
family can enter the program the same day.
A priority of
the staff at IHN is to work in cooperation with other service agencies
in our area, including providing feedback to referring agencies
regarding client progress.
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Volunteer
Ted Vero enjoys a lighter
moment while
working on a new
sink with a young IHN guest
(click to
enlarge)
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Discharge
When
guests have secured an income and found a home, families are assisted in
their move and given needed furnishings such as furniture, appliances,
linens, household accessories, and personal care items (provided by the
IHN Warehouse program, a volunteer effort involving collection and
distribution of furnishings to our guests). An exit interview
includes immediate and long-term plans and an evaluation of services by
the guests.
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Follow-up
with former guests
After
leaving our Network, guests are encouraged to maintain contact with
staff, and often friendships that have been established with volunteers
are continued. We provide counseling and social services to former
guests, along with contacts for community projects such as Christmas
gift and Thanksgiving dinner donations. We are currently working
with families who were our guests over three years ago.
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Two young guests
at IHN spend some fun time rough housing in the living room at the
Family Center in Washington, PA.
(click to
enlarge)
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