Open House Ministries Family Shelter

Welcome to Open House Ministries. We’re a family shelter in Vancouver, Washington, housing 100-plus residents a night, more than half of which are homeless children.

More than a shelter, we walk alongside homeless families as they work hard at rebuilding their lives.

Case Management
Open House Ministries teaches residents healthy life behaviors through this individualized, structured case management program. Individual plans can include mental health and addiction counseling, family counseling, parenting classes, interpersonal relationship classes, decision making and financial management classes, as well as men and women’s support groups.

Child Care

Education
Statistics show that, on average, children lose 3-6 months of education each time they are uprooted and transferred to a new school district. The Vancouver School District, a long standing collaborative partner of Open House Ministries provides the HOPE after school education program on site at the shelter. The District provides transportation to and from school, tutoring for school age children in the shelter and help with homework. Children in the program receive the assistance they need to catch up and stay current with their peers while parents learn essential parenting skills to support their children in their schooling.

Educational Enrichment
A core component of every adult resident’s Case Management Action Plan is education. Throughout the week residents are required to attend classes, based on their unique family situation and needs to prepare them for self-sufficiency. Programs may include but are not limited to:

- GED preparation courses through a cooperative program with Clark College
- GED tutoring
- Financial management classes
- Life skills classes
- Relationship management classes
- Work skills education

Work Skills
Many residents at Open House Ministries need help developing or learning basic work skills, building resumes and finding employment or educational opportunities. They do this with case managers and a job coach.

Transitional Housing
Providing transitional support is a crucial piece of helping residents find success in a post-shelter situation. Families who have had poor rental histories, bad debt and legal problems have trouble finding housing even when they have made significant progress. Gaining employment, building a savings account and finding a new outlook on life are a great start, but that progress doesn’t necessarily erase a person’s past mistakes. Our transitional housing program is one solution for helping residents find their way back to a normal, independent life.

Services

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