Program:
Public Housing Wellness
- Budget:
-
--
- Category:
-
Human Services
- Population Served:
-
Poor/Economically Disadvantaged, Indigent, General
Program Description:
A Wider Circle offers wellness programming for seniors and individuals
with disabilities who are living in public housing, providing health workshops,
basic need items, and beautification of the grounds. The seniors served by this program have been
living in or near poverty their entire lives, and A Wider Circle’s<em> </em>aim is simply to enhance their quality of life by increasing their
access to health information and “uplift activities” such as gardening and arts
& crafts. In 2006, A Wider Circle
established a Wellness
Center within the Sibley
Plaza Public Housing Building, a space into which seniors can come during the
day to socialize and take classes on health and wellness topics. Our workshops are audience-appropriate and
tailored to the needs of the population, with a focus on preventing diseases
that are more likely to affect low-income seniors.
Program Long-Term Success:
In 2008, we were able to deliver more than 393 health and wellness workshops at shelters and schools - more workshops than we offered in our first four years of service combined.
Program Short-Term Success:
In addition to the wellness brunches, provision of basic needs, and the social activities that A Wider Circle brings to D.C. public housing facilities, we are launching two new sub-projects; the creation of a Sacred Space garden at the Sibley Residential Facility with the generous support of the TKF Foundation, and a public health initiative aimed at the provision of healthy food and wellness information for seniors and the disabled. <br />
Program Success Monitored by:
Program Success Examples:
Program:
Neighbor-to-Neighbor
- Budget:
-
--
- Category:
-
- Population Served:
-
Poor/Economically Disadvantaged, Indigent, General
Program Description:
<p align="left">The Neighbor-to-Neighbor program collects donated furniture (e.g., beds, dressers, tables & chairs)
from families with more than they need and distributes it to families with
nothing. <strong> </strong>The aim of this program is to provide
families with the basic items they need to establish a new home – a critical
component in these families’ long-term struggle for independence and
stability. A Wider serves families
transitioning out of homeless and battered women’s shelters, recovering from
natural disasters, or otherwise living without their basic needs. Each of these individuals also received
health and wellness information at the time of their furniture selections. Because all of the furniture is donated and
transported by volunteers, Neighbor-to-Neighbor remains a low-cost and
efficient system of getting families the home items they need. Our goal for the year is to provide a bed for
every child – a task that will require extraordinary effort on the part of
staff, interns, and volunteers, and one to which we are deeply committed.</p>
Program Long-Term Success:
Program Short-Term Success:
Program Success Monitored by:
Program Success Examples:
Program:
Well Mother, Well Baby
- Budget:
-
--
- Category:
-
Human Services
- Population Served:
-
Female Youth/Adolescents (14 - 19 years)
-
Poor/Economically Disadvantaged, Indigent, General
Program Description:
<p>Well Mother, Well Baby is a comprehensive program for low-income pregnant adolescents, combining educational workshops such as Newborn Care, Parenting Skills, and Financial Management with the provision of items needed to raise a healthy child. The aim of the program is to produce health-conscious, prepared mothers as well as to provide an ongoing support network so these young women will stay in school and pursue positive career paths. A Wider Circle utilizes a small-group approach, with the same girls attending each class of the 10-14 week workshop series. At the end of the series we throw a baby shower for the participants, complete with cribs, strollers, and essential baby items. Without the program (based on evaluation data from participants and school nurses) the girls would struggle to obtain the baby items and health information, and would not have the powerful support community created by the workshops. </p>
Program Long-Term Success:
Program Short-Term Success:
Program Success Monitored by:
Program Success Examples:
Program:
School Community Program
- Budget:
-
--
- Category:
-
Education
- Population Served:
-
Children Only (5 - 14 years)
-
Poor/Economically Disadvantaged, Indigent, General
Program Description:
<p >
</p>
<p >This program provides
comprehensive after-school programming (e.g., physical education, communication
skills, “world culture days”) for children at low-income schools, as well as
educational workshops for parents, faculty, and staff. The aim of the program is to broaden the
students’ vision of what is possible in their futures, improve day-to-day
communication skills, and help students perform better on their standardized
tests. Joyce Thompson, principal of one
of the participating elementary schools, describes A Wider Circle as making “a major contribution to the improvement of the quality of
life” for the students and parents. The
workshops, she shares, are consistently informative and “the social skills of
our students are much improved as a result of having had the opportunity to
work with the facilitators during the after-school program.” </p>
Program Long-Term Success:
Program Short-Term Success:
Program Success Monitored by:
Program Success Examples:
Program:
Shelter Support
- Budget:
-
--
- Category:
-
Human Services
- Population Served:
-
Homeless
-
Poor/Economically Disadvantaged, Indigent, General
Program Description:
The Shelter Support program provides wellness
workshops (e.g., healthy self-esteem, stress management, and yoga) for shelter
residents, followed by the provision of basic need items as the families
transition out of the shelters. By
utilizing a holistic approach that focuses both on individuals’ tangible needs
and their “inner resources,” A
Wider Circle aims to ensure a smooth transition
from shelters to permanent housing. We
also work with families to create a healthy environment in their new homes by
sending monthly health and wellness newsletters.
Program Long-Term Success:
Program Short-Term Success:
Program Success Monitored by:
Program Success Examples: