There’s a word you hear a lot in the rooms and hallways of Raphael House: it’s partner. For some of us the word means a spouse or loved one. We might think of a best friend as our “partner in crime.” Maybe your daughter just made partner at the firm. Whatever imagery it conjures up, for us at Raphael House it’s more than a noun or a greeting. It’s a philosophy.
Partnership is one of Raphael House’s five core beliefs and it’s a principal that guides everything we do: from the way we engage the families we serve to leveraging professional relationships within our community in order to help grow our services. This collaborative approach has enabled Raphael House to build a robust network of donors, businesses, community leaders, and allied non-profits that share our vision of teamwork and help drive our success.
One of those success stories is about Susan, who came to Raphael House in the fall of 2011 after she lost her house. A single mom to two young girls, she lost her job as a caretaker and was struggling to establish stability for her family. Susan was incredibly nervous about looking for work and felt unprepared to face the current job market; she’d never even had an e-mail address and lacked the most basic computer skills.
Right away Susan began attending our weekly computer courses offered through our partnership with Community Technology Network. She also met regularly with Marcus, our financial literacy volunteer from Coming of Age—a non-profit that pairs the talents of people aged 50+ with community based volunteer opportunities—and worked with him on repairing her credit, reestablishing her bank accounts and saving up for future housing. A year and a half later, Susan and her daughters are doing great and remain connected to Raphael House via AfterCare. She continues to meet with our Workforce Development Specialist to focus on increasing her income and work opportunities.
Our community partners are a tremendous asset organizationally, but at the end of the day, it’s our families who reap the greatest benefit. Raphael House’s partnerships equip the families we serve with the tools and skills they need to have successful lives outside the four walls of shelter. As the saying goes, “it takes a village”, and we are fortunate to live in a village that shares our ethos of partnership like so many in San Francisco do.
On behalf of Susan and the families just like hers, thanks for being one of our partners in the fight against family homelessness.
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