Grants & Community Donations Close Gap

GRANTS AND COMMUNITY DONATIONS CLOSE FINANCIAL GAP FOR WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT’S HEALTH PROGRAM
New funding still needed to meet growing need in down economy

SACRAMENTO—Women’s Empowerment will continue to offer the health care component of its program for homeless women and their children, thanks to community donations and grants from Catholic Healthcare West and The California Wellness Foundation, which closed the gap left due to the economy.

“We are so grateful to the Sacramento community for its generosity during this difficult economic time,” said Lisa Culp, executive director, Women’s Empowerment. “While countless people and organizations across the region struggle financially, they still understand that the health needs of homeless women and their children are urgent and must be addressed in order to break the cycle of homelessness.”

The homeless population experiences an alarming rate of unmet health needs. At Women’s Empowerment, 85 percent of women in the program have experienced family violence, 69 percent struggle with drug and alcohol recovery, 59 percent have mental health diagnosis and 45 percent have no health insurance. Other health-related problems include clinical depression, hypertension, high blood pressure, asthma, diabetes, cancer and more.

The Women’s and Children’s Health program component at Women’s Empowerment accounts for about half of the overall program spending, budgeted at $161,000 in 2010.

"As the homeless population grows, so do urgent health needs,” Culp said. “We know that this year we are going to see not only more women and children who are homeless, but more women and children who need health care immediately. We will need the help of the community in order to meet these needs, as well as the many other factors that contribute to the cycle of homelessness.”

To donate to Women’s Empowerment, visit www.womens-empowerment.org or call (916) 669-2307.

Women’s Empowerment is the only job-readiness program exclusively serving homeless women in the greater Sacramento region. The 2009 Nonprofit of the Year has graduated 639 homeless women and their 692 children, with 91 percent of them finding permanent housing and 60 percent finding jobs or enrolling in school, despite the current economy. This unique program combines self-esteem courses, job training, health classes and support services to help homeless women across diverse ages, races and cultures. For more information visit www.womens-empowerment.org.