LIFTING UP WESTCHESTER INC
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Mission Statement
Lifting Up Westchester is a 501 (c) (3) social services agency that annually provides food, shelter and support to 3000 of Westchester County New York's men, women and children in need. Our goal is to lift them to greater self-sufficiency with dignity and respect. No one is turned away.
About This Cause
LUW, established in 1979, builds the foundation to permanently change the lives of 3,000 Westchester men, women, and children experiencing extreme poverty and homelessness. These individuals face significant social determinants of health and barriers to accessing a wide range of health services, which affects quality-of-life outcomes. LUW partners with its clients by offering a robust set of services designed to increase the clients' access to the resources needed to rebuild their lives and maintain an improved quality of life, including facilitating healthy, long-term housing, and access to a variety of support services. These services include employment and vocational guidance, facilitating educational attainment, accessing physical and mental healthcare, life skills, case management, emotional support and socialization, addiction treatment, supportive housing, and more. We recognize that clients experiencing homelessness and hunger are often experiencing many other challenges and design our services to be comprehensive and address the "whole person" and not just their homelessness or hunger. We work closely with community partners to enhance our service offerings rather than duplicating efforts. We define success as a permanent exit from homelessness and hunger. We focus on giving clients the tools they need to be self-sufficient in the long term while maintaining contact so we will know - and can help - if they are experiencing a setback or challenge that might threaten their self-sufficiency. We are on a mission to lift people up, restore their well-being, and strengthen their independence. Approximately 1,800 people are homeless each night in Westchester County - almost two-thirds are families with children. The loss of a home is almost always triggered by other losses - a job, a loved one, one's life savings, or one's physical and mental health. Becoming homeless in itself is a traumatic experience on top of these other losses and often results in a significant backward slide in an Individual's coping mechanisms and mental and physical well-being. For children experiencing homelessness, the lack of a safe, secure, and consistent place to sleep, play and do homework has long-term effects on emotional development, physical health, and academic accomplishment. Through steadfast community support, Lifting Up Westchester serves those experiencing homelessness with compassion, comprehensive services, and a sense of urgency to restore their independence in their own home as quickly as possible – and never experience homelessness again. Through our four key program areas, no hungry or homeless individual is ever turned away. We offer: Emergency Services: LUW operates Samaritan House, a 17-bed women's shelter, and Open Arms, a 38-bed men's shelter in White Plains, as well as emergency drop-in shelters for both men and women with a capacity for 30 adults. On weekdays, their soup kitchen serves mid-day meals. LUW’s shelters and emergency drop-in shelter serve approximately 500 unduplicated individuals annually. Housing: LUW provides safe, stable, and affordable housing options for homeless individuals living in shelters or on the streets and helps them transition into independent living. LUW currently has more than 200 individuals living in its supportive housing units - 90% of them have been stably housed for more than five years. Restoring Independence: Health and Wellness Support provides physical and mental care, skills, and knowledge as well as the social support clients need. Vocational Training and Employment Assistance provides the hard and soft skills needed to find and keep employment. Life Skills Training provides adult clients with the basic knowledge and tools needed to live successfully on their own. Rainbow Outreach Services provide social interaction and recreation for individuals from low-income and minority families who have intellectual and developmental disabilities and offers respite for their families. Next-Generation Educational Opportunities: LUW provides a variety of educational enrichment programs for 450 homeless and at-risk youth, ages 5-21, to ensure that they are the first in their families to go to college and the last to live in poverty.