At the Family Division of the Senator Philip D. Lewis Homeless Resource Center (HRC), more than two dozen indispensable Adopt-A-Family team members work on the front lines of family homelessness. Palm Beach County’s call center fields more than 12,000 inquiries every year, and nearly half are from families with minor children. These calls are directed to the HRC’s Family Division, staffed and operated by Adopt-A-Family since the center opened in 2012.Â
Each family’s unique set of circumstances requires a highly individualized response. The goal is to objectively assess each family’s situation, prioritize those at highest risk, and start working on a solution, whether through Adopt-A-Family or another community partner. In the interim, the HRC offers showers, laundry facilities, clothing, housewares, toys and books, school supplies, diapers, and computer access.
Diversion
Adopt-A-Family’s two-member Diversion team works to help families identify the quickest possible route to stable housing, often through a relative or in a more affordable community. This approach demands a creative yet practical response by identifying existing resources and paving the way for families to end their episode of homelessness as quickly as possible.
Emergency Shelter
Palm Beach County’s largest emergency shelter for families, Program REACH  is located just off Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard in West Palm Beach. The shelter, with 19 apartments, has been under Adopt-A-Family management since 2016. It offers up to 90 days of respite housing for parents and children who have been sleeping in cars, parks, abandoned buildings, and other places not meant for human habitation. The shelter is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and has one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments to accommodate families of different sizes. Additional supports include a food pantry, computer access, and afterschool tutoring. The Program REACH shelter serves an average of 100 families every year.
Because there are always more families that need help, Adopt-A-Family also operates a short-term, scattered site motel shelter program, providing safe lodging as families pursue a long-term housing solution. Shelter staff visit the families in their motel placement to provide case management, food, links to support services, and guidance in the pursuit of a stable housing solution.Â
Rapid Re-Housing
This program is designed to serve extremely low-income households who meet the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) definition of homelessness. An Adopt-A-Family Housing Specialist works with the household to find open, affordable housing that meets the family’s needs, serving as a liaison between landlord and tenants. Clients receive security deposit assistance and short- to medium-term rental assistance, and a Family Advocate provides ongoing case management and ancillary referrals.
The goals of the Rapid Re-Housing program are to:
- End a family’s episode of homelessness.
- Reduce the time spent in emergency shelter/motels or living in places not meant for human habitation.
- Avoid repeated episodes of homelessness.
- Enable the family to stabilize, establish the ability to maintain rent on their own, and become self-sufficient.
Youth Programs
There are three initiatives that are designed to serve pregnant/parenting youth (ages 18-24) who are experiencing homelessness. Connecting Youth to Opportunities (CYTO) and CYTO2 help young parents find and maintain stable housing. Housing Specialists identify affordable units and make arrangements with landlords. The program provides declining rental subsidy to give the clients time to establish the ability to pay rent on their own. Youth Establishing Stability is a scattered-site permanent supportive housing program for families in which the head of household lives with a disability.
To reach the Homeless Resource Center, call (561) 904-7900.