Downtown Women's Center

Downtown Women's Center provides housing and supportive services for women seeking addiction recovery and their children. Dwc has three addictions recovery shelters, three retail thrift stores, and operates the meridian apartments for low and moderate income men and women, including the elderly and disabled. Abba house abba house has ten efficiency apartments and is the entry point for homeless women with children. These women come to dwc by referral from treatment centers, shelters, drug court, individuals, or transfer from haven house to reunite with their children. Abba house residents are new in recovery with nowhere to place their children while working in the dwc recovery program. Residents must also attend and graduate from a 45-day intensive outpatient program (iop) as they learn how to navigate life and recovery while raising their children. Women and children work with a case manager, attend required aa/na and in-house group recovery meetings, arrange for child care, find a part-time job, receive professional counseling, and prepare to move to gratitude house after being at abba house for 6-9 months.

Haven house haven house is a dormitory-style residence and the entry point for 17 homeless women without children and for pregnant women. The first phase of recovery is rigorously structured and focuses on becoming and staying clean and sober. Requirements include a 45-day intensive outpatient program (iop), attending aa/na community meetings, finding part-time employment, attending mandatory in-house group meetings, and receiving professional counseling paid for by dwc. The women are constantly working toward relapse prevention and preparing to move to gratitude house after being at haven house for 6-9 months. These women come to dwc by referral from treatment centers, shelters, drug court, or individuals.

Gratitude house gratitude house is a 40-unit apartment complex gifted to dwc by baptist community services in 2016. It houses women, with or without children, in the second phase of the dwc recovery program. Units are fully furnished. Residents pay minimal rent for a one-bedroom, two-bedroom, or townhome with utilities included. Women are employed and/or attend school, aa/na meetings, in-house meetings, receive counseling, and participate in case management. They learn budgeting, parenting skills, homemaking, and life skills. They work on self-esteem, deepen their spiritual beliefs and practices, and restore family relationships. Women set educational and financial goals as they return to productive, drug-free lives. As with haven house and abba house, gratitude house is staffed 24/7. Gratitude house is across a parking lot from opportunity school, which provides high-quality early education learning and care for preschool children ages 3-5. Opportunity school also offers on-site childcare at gratitude house for newborns to three-year-old children living at gratitude house and abba house.

Exempt achievement transitional housing program after graduating from dwc's recovery program, women with and without children may enter dwc's transitional housing program and continue living in the same apartment at gratitude house while receiving services and pursuing a higher education. Meridian apartments this 35-unit apartment complex provides quality, affordable housing for low-income individuals. Meridian apartments is a positive living environment for many elderly, disabled, mentally-challenged, and single adults. For fye 2021, meridian apartments housed 35 individuals. Retail stores dwc operates three retail thrift stores. Dwc receives about 140,000 in net profit annually from the retail stores. In addition, dwc made 2,342 donations pickups in fye 2021. The stores have three purposes: to provide jobs for homeless women in our recovery program and others who are deemed 'unemployable,' to enable dwc to tithe out of in-kind donations to those in need, and to provide funding for the programs and administration of dwc. The retail stores work closely with over eighty amarillo area social service agencies, schools, and churches by donating clothing, household items, furniture, and appliances to those in need. Dental care dental needs among the homeless are great. Dental issues can interfere with regular attendance and performance at work or school. Homeless children, who experience higher levels of dental disease than other children, often do poorly in school. Thanks to several local dentists, emergency dental care is provided to people who are homeless and living in one of amarillo's homeless shelters. Merchandise contributions for those individuals and families who require merchandise from our retail stores, dwc receives a letter from any church or social service agencys letterhead listing the items requested. A dwc case manager ensures that needs are met and makes other referrals asneeded. For fye 2021, the stores helped 1,068 people through this voucher program. Service to community a special emergency assistance fund is utilized to meet some of the needs for the approximately 20 to 30 people each month who call or come in to ask for help; people who do not 'fit' the requirements of any other available social service assistance. The emergency needs include food, hygiene products,rental assistance, utility assistance, bus tickets, gasoline, etc. In addition, dwc works through the homeless management information system (hmis) with other non-profits and agencies in the community to guard against duplication of assistance. In fye 2021, dwc helped 220 people with emergency assistance.