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| Tamera (Rose) Saddler |
| Homespace Graduate |
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| In 2001, Ms. Tamera (Rose) Saddler was
a high school student, living with her parents and two year old
son, Marquis, when she learned she was pregnant. When her parents
told her she could no longer live with them, she had nowhere to
go with her young... |
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Homespace provides transitional housing
and support services to adult-aged single parents who are "homeless," as
defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,
as follows:
| (1) |
An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate
night time residence; and |
| (2) |
An individual who has a primary night time residence
that is: |
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(A) |
a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed
to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare
hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the
mentally ill); |
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(B) |
an institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals
intended to be institutionalized; or |
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(C) |
a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used
as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings. |
Residents must also meet the following eligibility
guidelines for our main facility:
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Parent must be single and
18-25 years of age. |
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Parent must have 1-3 children and legal
custody of their child or children, or must be in the last trimester
of pregnancy. |
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Children must be 6 years old or younger. |
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Parent must be affiliated with or residing in an emergency program
for homeless for at least 15 days or facing homelessness. |
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Parent must sign a contract that holds them accountable for participating
in goal oriented activities that will break cycles of dependency,
promote self sufficiency and prepare them to return to independent
living. |
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Families may reside at Homespace for a maximum
of two years. |
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No active use of alcohol
or drugs. |
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If there is a history
of abuse, the applicant must be in treatment or rehabilitation. |
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No history of abusive
behavior toward children, residents or staff. If Child Protective
Services has been involved with the case, the applicant must
have complied with suggested mandates from the abusive intervention
agency, such as parenting classes, home-aid, etc. |
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Be a caring parent, interested
in planning for his or her child's future. Be willing to learn
good parenting skills and techniques, and have the ultimate goal
of independent living.
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Be interested in personal growth, furthering
their education, obtaining job skills and training, and be willing
to attend counseling, support groups and educational seminars. |
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Receiving public assistance
or unemployment benefits, or wages from employment. |
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Capable of learning good
housekeeping skills includes budgeting, nutrition, home economics,
cleanliness. |
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Respectful of neighbors.
Indicate characteristics of trustworthiness and dependability. |
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Both applicant and child(ren) have had complete
medical exams in the last 60 days. |
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Have a thorough understanding
of Homespace's mission, goals, expectations, policies and be
willing to participate in all program requirements. |
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If the applicant is suffering
from a mental illness, he/she must have regular psychiatric care,
be taking prescribed medication, be stabilized and have the ability
to function in a transitional settings. He or she must not be
explosive or violent. |
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Reference from case worker,
family, school, or friends required. |
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Homespace does not discriminate because of ethnicity,
race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. |
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