Honoring, Recognizing and Congratulating Project H.O.M.E. for achieving 25 years of providing exceptional services to the homeless population in the City of Philadelphia.

WHEREAS,

Since its beginning in 1989, Project

H.O.M.E.

has been a leader in providing comprehensive and effective services to persons who experience chronic homelessness

; and

WHEREAS, using a holistic approach to tackling homelessness and poverty, the acronym H.O.M.E. stands for

Housing, Opportunities for Employment, Medical Care, and Education

; and

WHEREAS, Headquartered at 1515 Fairmount Avenue in North Philadelphia, t

he internationally known agency has developed more than 600 housing units, providing housing for approximately 760 residents, has helped more than 8,000 people get off the streets, kick their addictions, find jobs and new housing and employs about 290 individuals, almost 30 percent of them former clients; and

WHEREAS, Project

H.O.M.E.

is used by many cities and organizations across the country as a model for combating homelessness and has drawn praises from the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development; and

WHEREAS,

The mission of the Project

H.O.M.E.

is to empower adults, children, and families to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty to alleviate the underlying causes of poverty, and to enable all of us to attain our fullest potential as individuals and as members of the broader society

; and

WHEREAS, Founded by

Joan Dawson McConnon and Sister Mary

Scullion

,

both Philadelphia natives,

the two began to work together in 1988 on a project called the Night Winter Coalition, working with a team of volunteers taking to the streets to ask

chronically homeless men

to come in from the cold at

a temporary shelter in a vacant recreation center donated by the City of Philadelphia

; and

WHEREAS, In 2009, Time Magazine named Sister Mary as one of the World's most 100 Influential People, among the likes of President Obama, Oprah Winfrey and the late Senator Ted Kennedy; and

WHEREAS, In 2011, Sister Mary and

Joan r

eceived the University of Notre Dame's 2011

Laetare Medal

, the oldest and most prestigious honor given to American Catholics

for their efforts on ending homelessness; and

WHEREAS, Due the work of Project H.O.M.E. and other alike organizations,

Philadelphia's homeless population declined by 2.3 percent in 2013 from its 2012 level

; and

WHEREAS, Project H.O.M.E. operates facilities throughout North Philadelphia, Center City and West Philadelphia, including the Honickman Learning Center and Comcast Technology Labs, in North Philadelphia, offering both adult-education and after-school programs for children and teens; and

WHEREAS, Most recently, Project H.O.M.E. opened the JBL Soul Homes, a 55 unit facility for low-income tenants and the formerly homeless. Next year, Project H.O.M.E. expects to open a health-care center, the Stephen Klein Wellness Center, at 21st Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue which will have doctors from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and a YMCA; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the Council of the City of Philadelphia hereby honor, recognize and congratulate

Project H.O.M.E. for providing 25 great years of excpetional service to the city's most vulnerable population.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to Sister Mary

Scullion

and the staff of Project H.O.M.E.

as evidence of the sincere sentiments of this legislative body.

End