Fort Wayne Mayor Sharon Tucker announced $380,000 in funding for 22 local non-profit programs focused on helping low- and moderate income residents.
The City of Fort Wayne's Housing and Neighborhood Services Director, Kelly Lundberg said not every community uses the funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to fund non-profit services, but Mayor Tucker is committed to addressing needs of residents who are struggling.
“We just know that families are out there and they’re struggling with the increase in rent and groceries, so we really need our non-profit partners there to help these families out.”
The money comes from the city’s share of the federal Community Development Block grant and Emergency Solutions grant. It is focused on programs that assist with shelter, basic needs, employment skills and youth development.
The decision on the 22 non-profits came after a competitive grant process. Some of the organizations selected included the Center for Nonviolence, Mustard Seed Furniture Bank and the Literacy Alliance.
A full list of the awarded non-profits and the programs the funds will support:
- Blue Jacket, Inc. – Transitional Employee Support
Provides job training and employee wages at the agency’s social enterprise businesses. - Brightpoint – Coordinated Entry
Supports the mandated social service system that helps area agencies coordinate services for people in need of housing. - Brightpoint – Covering Kids & Families
Helps families enroll in public health insurance like Medicaid and the Health Insurance Marketplace. - Brightpoint – Rapid Re-Housing
Helps families maintain or obtain stable housing. - Catholic Charities – Journey Home
Provides one-on-one case management services for individuals as they transition from emergency shelter to longer-term housing. - Center for Nonviolence – Project SAFE
Provides low- to moderate-income survivors of domestic violence with education resources, and support. - Early Childhood Alliance – Childcare Support
Supports childcare for low- to moderate-income children in the Beacon Learning Program. - Euell A. Wilson Center – Work Ready Youth
Supports low-income teens in obtaining and maintaining employment, including job placement, workshops, personalized career and life coaching. - Forgotten Stones – Housing Support
Helps residents who struggle with homelessness manage their finances, pay their bills on time, and maintain their housing. - Fort Wayne Housing Authority Housing Opportunities Program – Rapid Re-Housing
Helps families maintain or obtain stable housing. - Fort Wayne Urban League - Youth Empowerment Services
Offers students a safe and welcoming space, one-on-one tutoring and peer support. - Just Neighbors – Shelter Operations
Supports essential services at Just Neighbors Shelter, the only local emergency shelter that serves families experiencing homelessness. - The League – Benefit Enrollment Center
Assists people with disabilities in applying for benefits such as SNAP (food stamps) - Mustard Seed Furniture Bank – Beds4Kids
Provides low-income children a new twin mattress, bed frame, pillow, sheet set and blanket. - St. Joseph Missions – Life Skills Coach
Helps residents build practical life skills needed to move toward independent living. - St. Joseph Missions – Shelter Operations
Supports the only local emergency shelter that specifically serves unaccompanied women experiencing homelessness. - TeenWorks – Employment Training
Provides paid internships, life skills training, and career/college exploration to under-served teens. - The Literacy Alliance – Project Graduate
Supports free High School Equivalency (HSE) classroom instruction to adults working to obtain their high school diploma. - Vincent Village – Car Care
Provides Vincent Village residents transportation to work, medical appointments and school. - Wellspring – Youth Programming
Supports the free after-school program and summer day camp for low-income youth. - YWCA Northeast Indiana – Emergency Financial Assistance
Assists individuals and families living in the shelter by providing payments to third-party vendors to cover short-term, emergency expenses such as rent and utilities. - YWCA Northeast Indiana – Shelter Operations
Funding to support the domestic violence and addiction recovery shelters.
