Calvary Women’s Services Receives Significant New US Government Funding to Expand Housing Services for Vulnerable DC Women

Funding will boost organization’s new Reach Up Program by 35%

Washington, DC (March 16, 2022) – Calvary Women’s Services secured $200,000 in new funding as part of the (FY) 2022 omnibus appropriations bill signed into law yesterday by President Biden. The funding, which was included in the bill as Community Project Funding, will bolster Calvary’s Reach Up Housing Expansion Project and increase the number of women Calvary can support with housing and other services including health, education, and employment programs.

“Calvary empowers women to make transformational change in their lives,” said Kris Thompson, Calvary’s Chief Executive Officer. “This additional funding for Reach Up helps us expand our capacity to equip women with the tools they need to end their homelessness for good. We are thankful to Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton for her leadership in securing this vital funding and for her advocacy on behalf of vulnerable women here in DC.”

“I was pleased to obtain the $200,000 awarded to Calvary Women’s Services in the omnibus appropriations bill the President signed into law,” said Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. “The funding will help Calvary expand both transitional housing and rental assistance for single women experiencing homelessness in the District of Columbia. Because of this funding, more women will receive safe housing, addressing increased community need in the wake of the COVID‐19 pandemic.”

Calvary is the only facility with beds for unaccompanied women experiencing domestic violence East of the River.

Reach Up opened in 2019 and currently offers over 30 transitional housing beds as well as rental assistance for women moving on to their own apartments. Approximately half of the beds at Reach Up are designated specifically for survivors of violence. The newly secured government funding will allow Calvary to expand the existing Reach Up program, increasing the program’s capacity by more than 35%.

“At Calvary, we are looking forward to the next phase of Reach Up,” continued Thompson. “With increased funding, we can continue to help more women find hope, make lasting change, and have a permanent place to call home.”

Calvary Women’s Services empowers homeless women to transform their lives through housing, health, education, and employment programs. Calvary provides these services in Wards 7 and 8, neighborhoods with the highest poverty rates in Washington, DC. Our programs help women who are survivors of violence and trauma, are living with mental illness, or are in recovery from substance abuse. Seventy percent of the women in Calvary’s transitional programs move into their own homes each year.

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