New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter Receives $50K Angels Of Change Grant
NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter was awarded a $50,000 Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation Angels of Change grant. Twenty nonprofits were awarded grants as part of the 20th anniversary of the Angel Awards program, which highlights individuals in communities across the state who are impacting the quality of life for Louisiana’s children.
“The goal of our Angels Awards program is to highlight individuals and provide support to organizations that demonstrate extensive impact on the quality of life of the children in Louisiana,” said Michael Tipton, president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation. “Jackie Silverman received the 2014 Angel Award for her work with the New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter and nominated the Shelter’s innovative case management program as an outstanding program worthy of recognition and support as part of this year’s Angels of Change grants. We are excited to include the New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter among our Angel of Change grant recipients this year. The Shelter is finding new and innovative ways to help homeless kids in New Orleans, and we are proud to highlight and support the great work they are doing.”
Since 1995, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation has recognized more than 160 individuals with the annual Angel Award – and provided more than $1.8 million to their associated organizations. This year’s Angels of Change grant program is a part of the Foundation’s ongoing commitment to Angel Award honorees and their causes. A panel of child welfare advocates met in August to select the 20 Angels of Change grant recipients for 2015.
“Critical to our success is receiving community support, so we are truly honored to be an Angels of Change recipient,” said Dawn Bradley-Fletcher, executive director of the New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter. “We want to thank The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation for recognizing our work of caring for homeless children in New Orleans. Children are the most vulnerable homeless population, and we are determined to meet the needs of every child that comes through our Shelter’s doors.”
The $50,000 Angels of Change grant will go directly to the development of an innovative case management program for every homeless child that the Shelter serves. The goal of the this new program is to identify the critical needs of each child and then to determine ways in which they might be met in collaboration with their mother and available community resources. This program will be offered to residents during their stay at the Shelter, and for up to two years after the families have graduated from the Shelter and are living in their own homes.
The New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter is the largest shelter for homeless women and children in New Orleans; its mission is to transition homeless families to sustainable and independent living. Since the relocation of the Shelter in early 2014 to the old Liberty House in Central City, New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter has more than doubled in size and now serves twice the number of women and four times the number of children. The Shelter has served more than 750 women and children since 2007 and continues to stay filled to capacity. This year, the New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter will serve 65 women and 130 children for an average stay of four months. Two-thirds of the individuals at the Shelter are children, and one-third of all operating costs go to caring for their needs.
