Transitional Housing

Project SOAR

Project SOAR stands for Stability, Opportunity, Achievement and Recovery. SOAR provides 90 units of safe, supportive transitional housing to clients enrolled in Serving Ourselves, as well as to individuals or who are already working in permanent jobs in the community but are still in need of other services before moving into their own housing. This drug and alcohol-free housing offers a supportive environment for men and women to address the issues that may have contributed to their homelessness while also learning the skills necessary to support themselves in the community. The goal of the program is to help participants transition out of the shelter and into permanent housing in the community in such a way as to best insure long-term success.

Since its inception, over 80% of Project SOAR graduates continue to be gainfully employed and live independently in the community.

Safe Harbor

Safe Harbor is a nationally recognized model for innovative and compassionate treatment of homeless women and men with symptomatic HIV/AIDS who are also struggling with addictions. Safe Harbor provides short-term housing, health care, mental health services and substance abuse counseling so individuals can recover from substance abuse problems and engage more fully in AIDS treatment programs. Graduates move on to supportive living environments and many reunite with their children and families.

Safe Harbor was recently featured on Nightline with Ted Koppel as a model for its compassionate treatment of homeless individuals battling AIDS and addictions.

One Wise Street

One Wise Street, located in the community of Jamaica Plain, is a nine-unit substance-free transitional house for working, formerly homeless men. Wise Street helps the men develop and relearn the skills necessary to achieve housing independence and to function as self-reliant and self-sufficient members of the community. One Wise Street residents work and pay rent. While residing at One Wise Street, the men learn life skills such as, meal planning, shopping, budgeting and bill paying, making business calls to establish utilities, filling out applications, time management, goal setting, problem solving and conflict resolution.

Wise Street is one of the most successful recovery homes in the state. While the highest success rate for a short-term recovery home in Massachusetts is 65%, Wise Street has consistently had a success rate of more than 70%. In 1998, Wise Street was awarded 1st place for counseling, life skills development and vocational development for homeless individuals by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts House of Representatives.