Our Mission:
Breaking the cycle of homelessness and poverty for families and children.
Our History
Over twenty years ago ForKids was founded by local citizens to shelter families in the Ocean View neighborhood of Norfolk. After opening Haven House as a 30-day emergency shelter those same citizens quickly found that short-term shelter was not an adequate solution for family homelessness and they embarked upon a new mission to “break the cycle of family homelessness.” In the succeeding years through many federal/private partnerships, including U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Norfolk’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Virginia HOME, ForKids lengthened the emergency shelter stay to four months, added critical clinical services for both the adults and children and funded the purchase, renovation and construction of our eight additional properties. We opened Norfolk’s first Transitional Housing Program in 1994 and the area’s first Permanent Supportive Housing Program in 1998. In 1995 ForKids founded the Norfolk Homeless Consortium in conjunction with two other family shelters and has led the Continuum of Care process which brings millions of federal dollars to Norfolk’s neediest citizens. Elizabeth Place, Legacy, and our newest permanent supportive housing, Dillon Place, is part of our long-term plan to revitalize West 38th Street in Norfolk. These four housing facilities provide a safer neighborhood for not only our families, but all the residents of 38th Street. ForKids has five residential programs in Norfolk and one in downtown Suffolk serving 39 families every night.
A partnership initiated in fall 2007 with the Norfolk Department of Human Services (DHS) for non-residential services, has resulted in ForKids serving an additional 45 families, more than doubling our daily capacity. This partnership assists families facing imminent homelessness or who are already homeless to obtain ForKids case management services for 12 months: DHS places these families in housing. This approach has been successful in other states as an alternative to families living in costly shelters for an extended period. Furthermore, in 2006, ForKids began receiving grants from the City of Virginia Beach to assist 12 homeless families annually.
Our commitment to tangible results and to building the communities in which we operate has resulted in numerous awards over the years including: the 2008 Campbell and Company Award for Excellence in Fundraising, Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the 2008 Housing Partner: Special Project Award, Hampton Roads Housing Consortium, the 2006 Neighborhood Builder Award, Bank of America Foundation, the 2006 Volunteer Program of the Year “Hot Meals and Homework,” Volunteer Hampton Roads, the 2005 Virginia Housing Award for Best Housing Program, and 2004 United Way of South Hampton Roads Agency of the Year.
February, 1988
When parishioner Vera Hartig discovered
that families at Holy Trinity’s soup kitchen
were homeless families in Ocean View,
she went to her priest and urged that
something be done. Father Joe Slattery
called together his parishioners, who in
turn gathered support from their friends
and 12 other Ocean View churches, and
decided to open a shelter for families.
Together they founded Homeless Haven,
Inc. and incorporated on May 16, 1988.
Board Members found a neglected
apartment building at 131 D View Avenue
eventually paying HUD $1 per year for
three years and purchasing the building
for $72,000 with a 0% interest, 30-year
loan.
1989 - 1991
Pete Craig and Mike Abbott headed
up the renovation of Haven House. They
were quickly joined by Pete Riggan.
Each man volunteered thousands of
hours to convert the building to a family
shelter, and hundreds of other volunteers
joined in this effort.
July 1991
The Board of Directors hired Elizabeth
Brickhouse to be the first Executive
Director.
December 16, 1991
Haven House opened its doors with
room for ten homeless families.
Summer 1992
Life Savings Bank donated two apartment
buildings on 7th Bay Street for use as
Transitional Housing.
1995
ForKids received grants from the
Department of Housing and Community
Development to renovate the buildings
and our first Federal Continuum of Care
grant to provide services.
May 16, 1996
Morgan Place Transitional Housing was
dedicated, named for Ernie Morgan, a
founder and strong Haven House
advocate.
May 20, 1997
ForKids broke ground on its first Legacy
home as part of the ECHO program
at 9605 8th Bay Street. The Episcopal
Consortium for Home Ownership began
in 1994 as a partnership of the Norfolk
Diocese of Episcopal Churches and
ForKids. It was initially started to provide
home ownership opportunities for
formerly homeless families. Renamed
“Legacy” Permanent Supportive Housing,
it now provides permanent housing for
six families with chronic disabilities.
Spring 1998
ForKids purchased, renovated, and
moved our office from the third floor of
Haven House to 4000 Colley Avenue.
1998
ForKids initiated a six-month Aftercare
Program for clients who exited our
residential programs. Through this HUDfunded
program, we offered the same
counseling, case management and
children’s services families received as
residents, with the goal of helping them
make the transition from our programs
to independent living.
January 1999
The Haven Family Center officially
changed its name to F.O.R.kids, inc.
Family Opportunities & Resources – to
better reflect the evolution from an
emergency shelter to a full service
agency for homeless families.
May 1999
ForKids received the donation of a
single family home on Dudley Avenue.
On February 26, 2001, ForKids client
Michelle Lassiter purchased the home
and moved in with her son Antonio,
becoming the first client to move from
homelessness to home ownership.
May 2002
ForKids opened the Junior League-
ForKids Family Resource Center, at 4000
Colley Avenue. Board member Lisa
Shapiro donated the services of her
architectural firm, and the Junior League
of Norfolk-Virginia Beach provided
funding as well as tremendous volunteer
support. Additional funding from HUD,
Norfolk Foundation, Landmark Foundation,
and Norfolk Community Development
Block Grant allowed us to build the
Center and establish our Education and
Services Initiative (ESI) program. The
Center housed a Resource Library as
well as ESI classroom space.
Spring 2002
ForKids held the First Annual Children’s
Art Auction. The first Children’s Art
Auction was held in a tent in the parking
lot of 4000 Colley Avenue. The
Junior League helped plan the event
which cost us a grand total of $320
and raised $22,000. The highest bid for
children’s art was $900.
September 2004
The Downtown 100 chose ForKids for
their signature project and we started
Hot Meals and Homework. Originally 8
children were tutored two nights a
week.
2005
ForKids opened Elizabeth Place
Transitional Housing on West 38th
Street. The complex included 5
residential units and program space.
It was named for former Executive
Director Elizabeth Brickhouse.
January 2007
ForKids partnered with the Norfolk
Department of Human Services, the
Dwelling Place and the YWCA to
create the Homeless Family Hotline
and Central Intake System.
May 2007
Rebecca’s Reading Room was dedicated
at Elizabeth Place in memory of
five-year-old Rebecca Burlingame.
Rebecca is remembered through
dozens of children learning to read
each year at ForKids.
August 2007
ForKids started ForKids In-Home to
provide case management for clients
placed in housing through the Norfolk
Central Intake System. The program
allows ForKids to serve an additional
35 non-residential families.
2008
March
ForKids moved the Family Resource
Center and administrative offices to
The Marie and Paul Finch Center for
Families and Children at 4200 Colley
Avenue. Paul Finch and Associates
donated the design work and the new
facility tripled space for programs.
Marie and Paul Finch, Beazley Foundation,
Alison J. and Ella W. Parsons Fund of
The Norfolk Foundation and Capital
Group funded the project.
May
ForKids' 7th Annual Children’s Art
Auction raised $210,000. Susan and
Vince Pilato bought ‘The Thinker and
the Dreamer’ for $11,500; this was the
highest closing bid for a piece of
children’s art in the history of the Art
Auction.
September 17, 2008
ForKids dedicated Dillon Place in
memory of longtime ForKids supporter
and past president Bill Dillon. The
six-plex located at 819 38th Street is
Permanent Supportive Housing for six
families. Funding provided by Landmark
Community Foundation, Perry
Foundation, HUD, DHCD and Capital
Group.
October, 2008
ForKids merged with The Center for
Hope and New Beginnings to offer
ForKids’ continuum of services to
families at Suffolk House. The Obici
Healthcare Foundation, Beazley
Foundation, Birdsong Corporation and
Pruden Foundation all joined together
to make this merger possible and to
bring expanded services to homeless
families in Western Tidewater.
November 13, 2008
ForKids celebrated 20 years of
breaking the cycle of homelessness and poverty
for families and children.
