The Empowerment Strategy Program

"From Survival To Self-Sufficiency"

Introduction

Since it first opened its doors twenty-four years ago, Friendship House has walked with thousands of homeless persons on their road back to independent, self-sufficient lives. This experience has taught the staff and volunteers important lessons about the nature of homelessness, recovery and ministry. Over the years each of these lessons has been incorporated into Friendship House's own specific philosophy and methodology of ministry. The Empowerment Strategy Program is the articulation of that ministry. Its essence is both descriptive and visionary. It describes what Friendship House is already doing, but it also defines the need for new programs in particular areas.

The Empowerment Strategy Program recognizes that each of us walks our own road at our own speed. Its purpose is to develop a pathway from survival to self-sufficiency which any homeless person may choose to follow. To have any hope for success, such a pathway presumes the following commitments from both the homeless client and the human service community.

From the Client

1. Motivation: Not simply the desire for one's situation to change, but a willingness to take responsibility for one's own recovery.
2. Honesty: The ability and willingness to speak the truth to oneself and others.
3. Realistic Goals: A recognition that since no one can do everything at once, a person needs to set priorities and address his/her issues in stages.
4. Dedication: Accepting that change takes time and energy. To accomplish one's goals, one has to give them the time and energy they demand.

From The Human Service Community

1. Adequate Resources: If people are going to succeed, the appropriate tools, programs and support systems must be available.
2. Options: Not everyone recovers in the same way. To each goal there must be several pathways that people can take.
3. Collaboration: In an era of diminishing resources, agencies must work together as a team to produce holistic recovery programs that are in their clients' best interest.
4. Relationships: Since most of the underlying causes of homelessness are deeply personal, there must develop a relationship of trust with members of the human service community before a client is willing to address his or her core issues.
5. Rewards: People need to feel that their hard work is making a difference. Besides accomplishing their long-term goal, there also needs to be the experience of short-term successes.

In its current form, the Empowerment Strategy Program is a six stage process through which homeless people would be assured of the survival network which will enable them to stabilize their lives and the support systems which will empower them to achieve true independence and self-sufficiency. While Stages 0 through 2 focus primarily on recovery from homelessness, Stages 3 through 5 seek to develop those life skills necessary to any person seeking to live a full and productive life in today's world. Such a learning system empowers its participants to exchange their feelings of powerlessness and total dependency upon the charity of others for the more positive self-image of pro-active students achieving self-identified goals through their own hard work and dedication.