Lucy,* was down on her luck with a windshield crack estimated at $339 that deemed her vehicle undrivable. Because she had just started her year with Partners in Housing, Lucy had no savings and was unable to pay for the replacement. This windshield replacement was a large setback as Lucy had just started attending Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) courses across town and needed to care for her adult son.

With support from Partners in Housing’s Flat Tire Fund, all costs were covered to repair her car, allowing Lucy to continue nursing school and care for her family.

Flat Tire Fund helps partners with car trouble

The kind of support Lucy received is made possible through the monumental support of neighbors like you making contributions. The Flat Tire Fund was developed for families in need of emergency or preventative care for their vehicles, along with families who are in need of bus passes, taxi vouchers, and other means of transportation.

Winter seems to bring on the need for more car repairs and often that’s just one too many bills for our partners to take on.

Funds for the Flat Tire Fund have been depleted in 2024! Your help is needed to bring the fund back into action – the goal is to raise $3,500 to cover partner car repairs and transportation costs this winter.

If you can help reach this goal, please donate here online or mail your contribution to Partners in Housing, 455 Gold Pass Heights, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 and note “Flat Tire Fund” in the memo of your check.

Neighbors helping neighbors is a core belief here at Partners in Housing and you make that belief a reality – thank you!

Taking winter in stride,

Mary Stegner

Executive Director

The post Winter Car Repairs are Coming appeared first on Partners in Housing.

“I support Partners in Housing because it serves families with children. If children do not have stability, they are not going to be able to thrive. As an educator, I have worked with vulnerable children all my life, both teenagers and young children, and many of those kids came from unstable environments. I have learned firsthand, until children find some stability, whether at school or at home, they are not going to be able to achieve their full potential. It is the children who have no voice that need us most. If we don’t support and nourish and nurture these young kids and make sure they have what they need, what’s going to happen to us as a society? And no child in Colorado Springs should be sleeping in a car.”

In the weeks leading up to our free Holiday Shopping Event for families, Karen coordinated donation deliveries, met donors, set up and organized the gift area for display, coordinated volunteers, and spent countless hours ensuring we had gifts for every child and parent in the program. This steadfast commitment to families is no coincidence- Karen has worked with children of all ages throughout her career as a teacher in District 2 and District 11. She began volunteering with Partners in Housing after becoming acquainted with Partners in Housing’s mission at a Lunch and Learn event several years ago. She has spent many hours in the donation center, reorganizing and creating a more welcoming space for families to shop. As Holiday Shopping comes to a close, Karen has taken initiative and redirected her efforts to maintain our Welcome Baskets for families as they begin their year-long journey in the Family Self-Sufficiency Program.

When asked about the importance of volunteering, Karen shared that, “I think it’s important for people to consider volunteering as a way to support their community; volunteering is really rewarding whether you give an hour a month or an hour a week, it’s going to make a difference in someone’s life. I really believe the quote, ‘I cannot do all the good that the world needs, but the world needs all the good I can do.’ It is absolutely true. I think we all are called to do something meaningful, and something that matters.”

In her free time, Karen also volunteers twice a week assisting a kindergarten class filled with some amazing kiddos in addition to her work to support Partner families. Karen added that all her work could not be accomplished without the help of other hardworking and dedicated Partners in Housing volunteers. She reflected, “there is an amazing spirit of caring and commitment among the Partners in Housing volunteers that is contagious.”

Thank you, Karen, for all that you do in our community! We greatly appreciate you! 

To read our full 2024 Winter Newsletter, please visit here!

Click Here to learn about our volunteer opportunities. If you are interested in volunteering, please reach out to our Volunteer and In-Kind Donation Coordinator, Tarin Hill, at Thill@partnersinhousing.org or (719) 559-3286 to learn more!

The post BEHIND THE SCENES: A Volunteer’s Impact appeared first on Partners in Housing.

Angela* never thought she would be homeless.

With a decent job, she was able to provide a stable home for her three children. When her landlord increased her rent dramatically, she was forced to look for another place to live.

She found a dream home on Craig’s List: perfect size, affordable rent, and still in the neighborhood where her kids went to school. She filled out the application and was approved, so she sent in her deposit and first month’s rent and waited for move-in day. Unfortunately, the listing was a scam and her savings was now gone. Unable to afford a new deposit, she moved from place to place, staying with friends and family until Partners in Housing accepted her. Considerable debt had racked up in that very short time. “I was so scared to look at my credit report after that, but the credit counselor put things in perspective and helped me come up with a plan to pay down my debt and get current with my bills.”

Armed with new knowledge and confidence, she contacted her creditors, made payment arrangements and began working with a Money Mentor to set up a workable budget. Money Mentoring pairs families with certified credit counselors for regular meetings to improve credit while volunteers and staff review budgets on a monthly basis.

At the end of her year, Angela’s credit score increased 120 points and was higher than it had ever been, meaning she did not have to come up with an additional deposit when she moved. “I am so grateful to the Money Mentor volunteers for understanding my situation and walking with me in this process.”

Families are also provided with Life Skills classes on a monthly basis that cover topics such as home ownership, financing a vehicle, self-care, and more.

If you would like to make a difference in the life of a family experiencing homelessness as a Money Mentor or a Life Skills Instructor, please reach out to our Volunteer Coordinator, Tarin Potter, at Tpotter@partnersinhousing.org 

The post More than Just Housing: Angela’s Story appeared first on Partners in Housing.

In an effort to provide comprehensive community support for families in crisis in the Pikes Peak region, Partners in Housing, along with Catholic Charities and Family Promise, has been hard at work to formalize the Family Solutions Collaborative.

On October 3rd, Partners in Housing cohosted a Families in Crisis Summit. Spending the day with other direct service providers who support families in need, we developed a focus on the work to be done in the Family Solutions Collaborative. This included creating a better referral network, common goals for preventing family crisis, and a clear “map” of services for families.

As a follow-up to Point #9 added to the City’s Homelessness Response last year, which promoted added services, family shelter units, and more transitional housing units, the Family Solutions Collaborative will strive to create a cohesive system of support. With a vision of Families Home Together, Tonight, Tomorrow and Forever, we will continue to meet to refine the goals of our community and the solutions needed to accomplish them.

The post Family Solutions Collaborative Gets its Start appeared first on Partners in Housing.