MBK : Mission & Services : Social Services
Social services make My Brother’s Keeper the neighborhood’s caregiver. It is through these services that we are the best friend to those in need. A friend who listens… who cares… who helps.
Where you find Poverty, you find Isolation. People suffering from the effects of poverty often don’t know where to turn. Many aren’t aware that there are programs available that can help and have helped hundreds of people before them.
The Social Worker at My Brother’s Keeper specializes in making connections for our guests. This involves helping them navigate through confusing bureaucratic red tape, scheduling appointments, and making appropriate referrals to meet their holistic needs with one goal in mind – to empower our guests to transition to self-sustainability by helping themselves… and in turn helping others and the greater community.
Social services provided by My Brother’s Keeper include:
- Crisis Intervention
- Counseling
- Case Management
- Financial Management
- Prescription Assistance
- Medical Co-payments
- Notary Public
- Eviction Intervention
- Housing Referrals
- Emergency Shelter
- Addiction Treatment Referrals
- Therapy/Mental Health Referrals
- Applications for State ID's, Social Security Cards, and Birth Certificates.
- Applications for Energy Assistance
- GED Program Referrals
- Food Vouchers
- Clothing Vouchers (good at Collins Thrift Store for family clothing or job preparation clothing)
- Bus Tokens (for medical appointments, job interviews, and transportation to other organizations for assistance)
Some of our guests come to us after being recently incarcerated, and we are there for them to connect them to the resources that will help with their re-entry, to get them resituated and restored to independence. These efforts result in real resource savings for our publicly funded institutions and steer our most desperate cases back on track.
Our records from last calendar year reflect that our Social Services staff served 520 guests from January-December 2009. On behalf of those guests Social Services staff made 828 client contacts for various social services and on-going case management. Among all these cases over the years are inspirational stories of individual lives made better through My Brother’s Keeper, like this one here.
Social Services has undergone a major transition over the past few years, made possible by our benefactors. Social Services will continue to play an important role in our community with your pledge of support.
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