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IHN meets families at a time of personal crisis and helps them begin the  journey back to self-sufficiency.
 

MOVING FAMILIES FORWARD – THE IHN STORY

IHN is a private, not-for-profit organization. We are one of over 125 networks affiliated with Family Promise  (formerly called National Interfaith Hospitality Network) that was founded in 1988 as a volunteer response to homeless families. The IHN model has proven to be an innovative and effective program. Locally, IHN was created in 1999 by a group of concerned citizens who responded to the critical need for an emergency shelter for homeless families. While other homeless shelters did exist in Fort Wayne, none had the capacity to provide emergency shelter that would keep the entire family together. Homeless families had been forced to separate with the women and children in one location and men at a separate shelter. IHN’s goal was to work with families to return them to self-sufficiency keeping the family unit together throughout the process. The integrity and worth of the family are cherished hallmarks of the hospitality of the IHN program. In the IHN model, local churches are recruited to provide space within their facility to house families during the evenings and to provide volunteers to bring the evening meals for the families. This model adds a personal human component that provides meaningful benefits to both the homeless families served and the volunteers serving.

WHAT WE DO

Families are referred to IHN by 211 First Call for Help and other local social service agencies. Once contact is made, families are directed to our Day Center to meet our staff.  The Day Center is located in a small two-story house located in southeast Fort Wayne. This site provides an address and phone number for guests to use in job and housing applications and is located on a city bus route.  Families stay at the Day Center during daytime hours of 7am to 5pm. Here they may take showers, do laundry, and receive assistance from our staff. The staff works with the families to provide case management and needs assessment. They assist guests with obtaining housing, employment, and other services for which they are eligible through referrals to other local social service agencies. IHN works with the Fort Wayne Community Schools to ensure that all school-age children continue to attend school.

At the end of the day, the IHN van driven by a volunteer transports families to the host facility for the evening. The families are met there by volunteers who bring the evening meal for our guests and help them to settle in for the night. The volunteers often provide assistance with homework, recreational activities, and the warmth of human friendship and hospitality for the evening.

Each of the participating congregations serves to host the families for a one-week period. Host congregations commit their facilities and volunteers to house and feed up to 14 homeless guests, for a one-week period, a minimum of three times per year. The maximum capacity is 14 people per day because that is the capacity of the van that transports families between the Day Center and the host congregations. Our goal for the year is to serve at least 30 families with an average stay of 45 days.