Interlace‚ Services for Women and Children

Interlace is a transitional housing program for women and children who are homeless due to domestic violence.

In Asheville there are several programs and organizations working to help victims of domestic violence, both during crisis and after it. One of those programs is Interlace.

Interlace is a transitional housing program for women and children who are homeless due to domestic violence. The program is a collaboration of five Asheville area local agencies: the Affordable Housing Coalition (AHC), Helpmate, Consumer Credit Counseling Services (CCCS), Housing Authority of the City of Asheville (HACA), and Pisgah Legal Services. Its goal is to empower women to work towards lives which are violence-free, stable, and independent. In order to achieve this goal, the program provides a wide array of information, advocacy, and supportive services. We work closely with the participants to create a comprehensive network of housing resources and other community-based services, so that the women can work on an individualized plan to achieve their own goals.

The
participants enter into an 18-month program which provides transitional
housing for them and their children. The women pay 30% of their income
as rent (which is calculated every month to include any financial
changes the family experiences) and any utilities cost. All of the rent
money is then put into an escrow account and given back to the
participants upon graduation from the program.

To graduate from
Interlace, the women must comply with the agreements they sign when
they enter the program. Basic provisions of these contracts are:
keeping the house clean and safe, paying rent and utilities on time;
developing the activities stated in their tiered plan (including
domestic violence and financial assessments, participating in
counseling sessions, and attending housing education classes/session),
and attending monthly Interlace meetings.

Participants
meet with their case manager once a week, discuss new obstacles the
family faces every day, and the ways to address them. The case manager
also serves as a resource in terms of providing the family with
information about community-based services that can help them stabilize
or improve their life.

Interlace has
the capacity to serve 16 families. To be eligible for one of these
residences, the applicants must be women and their children who are
homeless due to domestic violence. No legal residence status is
required.

Interlace has a
bilingual case manager to work with Spanish-speaking participants in
the intensive way their situation requires. For more information please
call (828) 252-1155. For information in Spanish call (828) 776-1305.

Post Views: 123