"Transforming People & Communities from the Inside Out."
published December 21, 2009
Community Groups Help Eliminate Isolation
One major goal for Breakthrough’s guests is to move from transitional housing into permanent housing. In other words, they want to move out of Breakthrough’s Dwelling Place.
But while getting out on their own again is something that they look forward to, the transition can bring some uncertainty and apprehension–and a great deal of isolation. Now, Breakthrough has started a pilot program to help ease the transition and ultimately give men and women a better chance at long-term success.
“Moving out of Breakthrough and into permanent housing is sort of a jolt,” says Housing Coordinator, Paul Luikart. “At the Dwelling Place, they are surrounded by other guests and by staff members. Once they move out, that pretty much disappears right away. There tends to be little or no interaction, except for occasional visits from social workers.”
He continues, “When guests enter supportive housing, that doesn’t mean that all the issues or crises in their lives are gone, and it’s easier to hide or avoid dealing with those things when no one is around. People deal with crisis best with a support model, so we’re trying to be proactive about what could turn into a relapses or depression.”
With the help of one long-time volunteer group, Breakthrough has started a Community Groups initiative. The group, which is modeled loosely on church small groups, has met just a few times at a permanent housing location in Humbolt Park.
“Right now, we’re meeting just once a month. We have a topic or scripture in mind for brief discussion. We ask volunteers to bring snacks, and we leave plenty of time for just getting to know each other,” says Paul. “We hope that residents and volunteers will form a bond and that there is a possibility for long-term relationships. It’ll be healthy for residents to have a positive, supportive relationship that is not dependent on whether or not they meet a goal, like in a case management relationship.”
Paul shares one recent example of how the program could help expand supportive networks for Housing residents. “One of the guests is in school right now. Last time, after the group was over, this guest was sitting down with one of the volunteers, who happens to be a teacher. They were going over some of the guests’ schoolwork together.”
A Community Group will soon meet at a supportive housing location near the UIC campus, and Breakthrough hopes to bring the model it’s third housing location in Uptown. Ultimately Breakthrough would like for the program to be volunteer-driven, and right now they are looking for volunteers to get the Uptown group off the ground.
Paul points out that the Community Groups initiative is a pilot program. “There is one way to add to or build supportive relationships. We want to be open to new ideas, and perhaps what we do here will look different in 6 months.”
Contact Volunteer Coordinator, Liz Laird, at volunteer@breakthrough.org to find out more details.