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OUTREACH MINISTRY - 
ESI CONNECTIONS
(Formerly Emergency Shelter, Inc.)

"Helping families come home"

Salisbury Presbyterian Church has been a good friend to ESI Connections for a number of years. The church supports the agency with a financial gift through its Outreach Mission, the middle school group has given a Christmas party every year for the residents of the Family Shelter. Our young people bring filled stockings for the children and gifts for the moms, provide refreshments and activities. One of the circles has assisted with school supplies for the children in the Fall and after many church activities the leftover food finds its way to the Family shelter.

ESI Connections is the largest year round provider of homeless services in the greater Richmond area. The mission of the agency is to assist men, women and children to develop the skills needed and connect with the resources necessary to obtain and retain permanent housing. The focus of all six programs of the agency is to assist residents in dealing with the issues that led to their homelessness and to help them develop greater self-sufficiency. The agency provides two 90-day programs - the Family Shelter and the Men's Emergency program and four long-term transitional programs - the Women and Children's transitional, Men's transitional, Veteran transitional and the new Single Women transitional. The two emergency programs provide case management, assistance with housing, substance abuse counseling and assistance with job searches. The four transitional programs provide case management, life skills training, debt reduction plans, substance abuse counseling, assistance with job training/education, help with employment and assistance obtaining housing. All six programs have computer labs available to residents with training for both children and adults.

ESI Connections provided shelter and services for over 600 individuals last year and 224 of those individuals were children. The children's ages range from two days old to mid-teens. The agency provides tutoring for all school age children, developmental assessments as needed, weekly parenting classes, arranges for infant stimulation groups, psycho-educational groups for the school age children, physicals and dental care. The children are provided with group outings and creative activities when possible.

ESI Connections has been able to realize some truly remarkable outcomes for its programs in the last several years. By concentrating on the complex issues leading to homelessness and providing a structured, supportive and goal-oriented environment the agency has achieved the following results. 69% of all families and individuals leaving the 90-day programs moved to permanent housing and over 90% of the families and individuals leaving the transitional programs moved to permanent housing.

There are many opportunities for assisting ESI Connections for the Salisbury congregation. The agency always has a need for paper products, towels and twin sheets, personal care products and food. We need infant and toddler clothes, equipment and toys. The agency leases a number of apartments for families in the final stages of the transitional program and furnishing them is a challenge. We need sofas, chairs, kitchen tables and chairs, dressers, end and coffee tables on a nearly on-going basis. Volunteer opportunities include painting and fix it projects at the shelters, tutoring and providing children's activities. There is a need for people to provide individualized assistance with beginning computer skills and the men's shelter has several openings for Sustenance churches. Sustenance churches provide the evening meal for 30 men at the men's shelter one day of each month. (example - first Monday, third Thursday) Other volunteer opportunities include board membership or assistance with special events such as our Race for the Roof.

Email Janice Fatzinger, our SPC ESI Connections coordinator, Sue Casey of the Outreach Committee, or the church office,
if you wish to participate through this SPC Outreach program in "Helping more families come home."

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Copyright © 2000-2006 - Salisbury Presbyterian Church, Midlothian, VA
Last update: 07 February 2006