Hopelink wins $945,000 grant

Families living in Hopelink's Avondale Park will get an extra boost in their efforts to become self-sufficient, thanks to a $945,000 grant the transitional housing program will receive today.

The grant is part of $5.5 million in funding going to 14 nonprofit organizations statewide through the Washington Families Fund. The public-private partnership supports programs that help families in transitional housing get the skills they need to get them back on their feet, said spokeswoman Lynn Fitch.

Hopelink, the Eastside's largest social-service agency, received the biggest grant of this year's Washington Families Fund.

All the grants will be given over a five- or 10-year span, so an organization can be assured of reliable funding over time, Fitch said.

Other grants include:

• $420,000 to the Church Council of Greater Seattle for employment training and child-focused services for its Home Step project.

• $420,000 to King County's Consejo Counseling and Referral Service for case management and advocacy service for Latino families who are homeless due to domestic violence.

• $562,500 to Sound Mental Health for mental health, chemical dependency and case-management services for homeless families.

The grants will be announced today at Avondale Park in Redmond, which provides 50 units of transitional housing for formerly homeless families.

Hopelink, which manages Avondale Park, will use the grant to hire an employment specialist to help residents find long-term employment and the skills they need to be successful, said Meghan Altimore, manager for Avondale Park.

The grant will also pay for more case managers who work with Avondale Park's families, helping them deal with mental-health or addiction issues and learn to manage households and finances, Altimore said.

"Our primary goal is to help residents find stable housing, and that has to start with the basic building block of income and employment," Altimore said.

In 2006, 83 percent of residents who left the two-year program moved on to permanent housing, she said.

While the grants are being announced today, a state Senate committee will be getting ready for a hearing on whether to continue funding the Washington Families Fund. The fund began in 2005 with initial funding of $6 million.

Gov. Christine Gregoire has requested that the state Legislature fund an additional $6 million so it can continue to give grants to nonprofit organizations. The state's funds are matched through private donations from foundations and corporations, such as the Gates Foundation, said Fitch. To date, about $9.3 million has been awarded to 28 projects, Fitch said.

Rachel Tuinstra: 206-515-5637 or rtuinstra@seattletimes.com