Congregation B'nai Tikvah - Beth Israel

Serving the Southern New Jersey Jewish Community

Family Promise of Gloucester County

Family Promise represents a national movement that believes we can address family homelessness, right here in our own communities.  There are currently 192 operating Family Promise affiliates in 42 states.  The organization engages 160,000 volunteers from 6,000 congregations nationwide to provide services to more than 50,000 homeless and low-income people annually. 

Family Promise – Gloucester County provides homeless families an opportunity to achieve stability by providing shelter, food, case management, and hospitality while simultaneously utilizing resources within local congregations and the community.

The following are the five basic components of the program:

1. Hosts

Hosting rotates weekly among 12 congregations within Gloucester County. In turn, each host congregation provides lodging, three meals daily, and welcoming care.

2. Day Center

Guest families use a day center, located in Glassboro, from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM daily.  There, the director, a professional social worker, with the assistance of interns, provides case management services.  Guests pursue employment if not already working, tend to pre-school children, shower, and do laundry. The day center provides guests with a mailing address and a base for housing and employment searches.

3. Volunteers

Volunteers provide the following services:

• Setting up living areas and cots before guests arrive at each host congregation on Sunday afternoons
• Driving the van between the Day Center and the hosting congregation
• Cooking and serving meals
• Playing with children, reading to them or helping them with homework
• Interacting with guests, with respect and compassion

4. Social Service Agencies

Local social service agencies refer families to the Network. The agencies may also help guests find housing, jobs, and benefits.

5. Transportation

A van transports guests to and from the Day center. The van also carries luggage and other belongings to the next host congregation.

At the present time, there are 12 congregations within our county, which serve as hosts, and 12 others, which, while unable to physically host families, act as support congregations. B’nai Tikvah Beth Israel is a support congregation for Bethel United Methodist Church, a hosting church, located on Delsea Drive in Sewell.  If you are interested in getting involved with the program, please contact Beth N. our volunteer coordinator, c/o Congregation B’nai Tikvah – Beth Israel at the phone number and mailing address below.

For more information on Family Promise: Gloucester County, visit their website at www.familypromisegc.org.

Additional information about the national Family Promise organization can be found at www.familypromise.org.