Front Steps manages the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless and co-manages Garden Terrace Residences, Austin’s first permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless individuals. Front Steps also offers transitional housing for case management and Streets of Hope graduates.

Front Steps Mission: Front Steps is based on the belief that all people deserve the dignity of a safe place to call home and seeks to end homelessness by providing shelter, affordable housing and community education.

Who We Are: Front Steps was founded in 1997 as the Capital Area Homeless Alliance. Front Steps works to develop and implement programs designed to move homeless individuals from the streets and shelters into transitional and permanent housing. Through skills development, employment services and case management, Front Steps supports low-income, homeless, and disabled individuals and their families in their efforts turn their lives around.

ARCH Mission Goals: The Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (ARCH) serves as the first point of entry into the social services system for the majority of single homeless adults by providing a full continuum of services needed to effectively overcome their barriers to housing and self-sufficiency. Front Steps implements case management programs at ARCH as well as programs that help people obtain and keep recovery from drugs or alcohol.

Over 10,000 unduplicated individuals were served at ARCH in 2007, most seeking to meet their basic needs: shelter, food, showers, laundry, lockers, phones, clothes mail and messaging. Others worked closely with outreach workers from eleven agencies co-located at the ARCH. These agencies include: House the Homeless, Family Eldercare, Veterans Services, Goodwill Industries, A New Entry, Mental Health Mental Retardation ACCESS, the Austin Advocate, Art from the Streets, AmeriCorps, and the Methodist Mens Clothing Closet. Also located at the ARCH is the City of Austin Homeless Health Clinic.

Volunteer Opportunities: Front Steps seeks a diverse and committed citizen population of volunteers to help homeless individuals access services at the ARCH and Garden Terrace Residences.

By serving dinner, sorting donations, distributing clothes, assisting with mail and messaging, opening cold weather shelters and monitoring the computer lab, Front Steps volunteers help ready a homeless population towards their goal of housing.

Volunteer Orientations: Two monthly volunteer orientations are scheduled for the second Tuesday and the fourth Saturday of each month. For more information or to get involved, please visit FrontSteps.org.

For direct inquiries, please contact:

Susan Morris
Community Relations Director
Front Steps
512-305-4133
Email

— Hawk Mendenhall