Support For Parents

In addition to safe, affordable housing, Solid Ground provides parents with services which support long-term goals of increased stability, improved health, and self-sufficiency.  The support provided by Solid Ground helps the homeless women and men living in our housing programs build the strong foundation that their family needs to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty.

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Jessica’s Story

Jessica is a mother of 4 children who range in age from 1 to 18.  She started doing drugs at age 30 and in her 5 years as an addict, “I lost everything, inside and out, material and emotional.”  She even lost her children and became homeless.  When she found out that she was pregnant with her now one-year-old son, she sobered up and took her first steps towards stability.

Now, Jessica is working hard to build a new life.  She and her son are living in Solid Ground’s supportive housing.  In addition to managing her mental and chemical health, Jessica has completed all of the programming offered by Solid Ground.  She even continued with extra Dialectical Behavior Therapy sessions after she completed the 6 months because of how much she was getting out of it.  Jessica is volunteering and looking for work, and is working hard at being the best parent that she can be.  Jessica’s goal for her children is for them to follow their dreams and to stay true to themselves.  She adds, “As I teach my children to be confident, I am praising myself as well.  We are learning together.”

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Goal Planning

Families and their Advocates work together to develop an individualized goal plan that addresses six key areas: Housing Stability; Economic Stability; Educational Advancement; Strengthened Families and Living Skills; Improved Health; and Community Connections.

Budgeting & Tenant Training

Each parent attends a six-week workshop on creating and maintaining a household budget.  Topics covered include repairing their credit, using financial institutions to build wealth and basic financial management.  Also covered in the class are tenant/landlord rights and responsibilities and conflict resolution to increase a family’s ability to maintain housing when they leave Solid Ground.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills Training

The use of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) skills training is a unique feature at East Metro Place. We were the first agency in the Twin Cities (and possibly the nation) to provide DBT skills training in a family supportive housing setting.  DBT assists clients in the regulation of emotions typically brought on by severe stress and trauma and has been shown to help our clients successfully manage their mental and chemical health.

Parenting Classes

Solid Ground provides parenting at East Metro Place with parenting classes using The Incredible Years, an evidence-based curriculum, to help the homeless women and men in our program gain knowledge and skills to be the best parents they can be.

Employment & Education Services

Solid Ground provides group and individual employment services to support our families in gaining and maintaining employment and ultimately achieving greater economic stability.  Individual tutoring for adults is offered as needed to adult students at East Metro Place.  Tutoring is designed to help adult learners prepare for their GED exams or in their college courses.

Referral to Community Resources

Staff assist parents and their children in accessing needed resources, such as financial aid for school, affordable childcare and transportation, chemical dependency treatment, mental health services, support groups, etc.

Transition Planning and Aftercare

As families near the completion of their program, staff work with parents to develop a plan for securing permanent housing.  Staff continue to provide advocacy and assistance as needed upon a family’s departure from Solid Ground.

Household & Gift Donations

With the support of our generous donors, we provide donated furniture, household and personal care items, free of charge, as well as birthday and holiday gifts.