Neighborhood House awarded $100K to help amid COVID-19 struggles
Neighborhood House was awarded a $100,000 grant from Oakland County and United Way for Southeastern Michigan.
The nonprofit received the grant from the Oakland Together Community Response and Recovery
Fund, which was set up to support organizations struggling due to COVID-19.
Neighborhood House provides wrap-around services to individuals and families experiencing financial hardship within Rochester, Rochester
Hills, Auburn Hills, Oakland Township and Addison Township. They provide essential services to the local community, and they’ve seen a significant increase in demand during the past few months due to job loss or decreased hours.
“We have provided over 50,000 meals these past few months . ... During the entire Stay Home, Stay Safe order, the Neighborhood House Food Pantry has remained open,” said Kathy Losinski, Neighborhood House executive director.
“We shifted to a drive-thru model in order to keep our clients, volunteers and staff as safe as possible. We are also providing home food delivery to our most vulnerable households. Slowly, we are starting to open some of our other services such as career mentoring, financial focus classes and clothing assistance at the Neighborhood House Clothes Closet.”
With the lost revenue from fundraisers and increased need, Neighborhood House has set up a COVID-19 Emergency Fund. With a goal of $914,000, this fund was created to meet the needs of local households for the rest of 2020. The $100,000 grant from the Oakland Together Community Response and Recovery Fund will be applied toward this goal.
The bulk of the grant funding will be dedicated to direct client assistance, including rent assistance and car repairs. Neighborhood House will also be able to purchase additional personal protective equipment, signage and more in order to keep their facilities functioning during this difficult time.
For more information, visit www.ranh.org. The Neighborhood House’s main office is located at 1720 South Livernois Road, Rochester Hills.