Lantern Community Services

Lantern Community Services (Lantern) champions the independence and well-being of chronically homeless New Yorkers. To help unhoused persons secure and maintain stable housing, we provide supportive housing, emergency shelter, and wraparound services in 19 sites across Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. In FY 22, 95% of our supportive housing tenants maintained stable housing at Lantern or moved on to more independent housing. Lantern offers on-site supportive services to residents of supportive housing and emergency shelter and linkages to services available in the broader community to help all progress toward increasing security, stability, and quality of life. To this end, we offer case management, housing stability support, and an array of cross-building programs that provide residents with diverse opportunities for engagement, community connection, and skill building.SHELTER ACHIEVEMENTSIn September 2021, Lantern opened Rockaway Terrace. Located in Far Rockaway, Queens, our third shelter has a full capacity of 180 beds designated for single men experiencing homelessness. Both of our other two shelters, Laurel Hall and The Plaza, were able to increase housing placements and received recognition by the Commissioner for exceptional move-out numbers. At Laurel Hall, Long Term Stayers (LTS) housing placements rose to 91%, and LTS housing placements at The Plaza rose to 92%. HEALTH PROGRAMSI. Peer-Driven Programs in FY 22In May 2021, Lantern received a grant from the CDC Foundation to address health inequities tied to vaccine confidence and uptake for COVID and Influenza. Our intervention, called On Point, is grounded in a peer-based health educator model. Achievements from FY22 include: Twenty-seven supportive housing residents engaged their neighbors and doubled our vaccination rates for COVID from 38% to 76% in under six months. These 27 Vaccine Ambassadors completed 26 group events, 95 information tabling events, and 425 individual outreach events consisting of door-knocking and face-to-face conversations with their neighbors, reaching 1,044 individuals.Following our demonstrated successes in FY 21, the CDC Foundation provided a second grant to extend and expand On Point in FY 22.In May 2022, we received a third grant from the CDC Foundation to increase HIV awareness and knowledge of HIV status. This resident peer model, called Knowledge=Power (KEP), consists of outreach education, distribution of free at-home HIV test kits, and staff support in linkage to care for those who test positive. II. Harm Reduction HighlightsThroughout FY22, the Health and Wellness Department strengthened its focus on harm reduction and overdose prevention. In October 2021, Lantern was certified by the NYC and NYS Departments of Health as an Opioid Overdose Prevention Program. All client-facing staff members are trained to dispense naloxone to tenants and educate them on its use. Lantern also became a pilot program for a NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) initiative to reduce fentanyl-related overdoses in New York. Through this program, all sites have at least one staff member who is trained in distribution of fentanyl test strips and resident education.In March 2022, we successfully obtained funding from the Brooklyn Community Foundation in support of harm reduction efforts at our two supportive housing sites in Brooklyn. FOOD AND NUTRITIONI. Program Spotlight: Food 4 LifeThrough a grant from the USDA, Lanterns Food 4 Life Program entered its fifth year of providing culinary instruction and nutrition education to young adults who moved into Lantern supportive housing upon aging out of foster care. According to the Food 4 Life post-surveys (2022):75% of participants strongly agreed that they could prepare a nutritious meal that is affordable100% of participants made more than four of the recipes at home after the end of the program75% of participants report they cook and eat more after participating in the classes. We supplemented Food 4 Life activities with a new program, called the Food Justice Action Team (FJAT) in FY 22. Supportive housing tenants participating in Lanterns FJAT program were part of a 13-week workshop series, where they learned proven methods that can change food system inequities in their community. II. Food Security Initiatives throughout the COVID-19 PandemicIn continuation of our expanded food security efforts that began in FY20, we implemented food distribution programs (Fresh Food Box and shelf-stable pantries) across all 16 of our supportive housing sites. Fresh Food Box (FFB) provides supportive housing residents seasonal and locally-sourced fruits, vegetables, eggs, and grains that are delivered to our buildings on a weekly to biweekly basis. In FY 22:Our Fresh Food Box program distributed over 5,600 boxes of produceWe served over 20,000 meals across our supportive housing sites.EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENTI. Childrens Education ServicesChildrens Education Services focused on building partnerships to introduce new programming, coordinating a volunteer-driven tutoring program, supporting youth with academic enrichment & school choice support, as well as assisting students with applying for scholarships. Highlights include: Lantern collaborated with the St Barnabus Hospital Health & Fitness Department to launch a boxing program for a boy cohort, aged 10-11, living at one of our supportive housing sites. Four students were matched with one of their top three middle or high schools choices.Seven students utilized the tutoring program.Five Lantern tenants received Mega Contracting college scholarships.Ten students were enrolled in the Musical Mentors Collaborative (MMC) Program, which allows students to receive instruments and one-on-one virtual music coaching.II. Employment and Adult EducationOur specialists work with residents to promote employment and education as a path to an independent, stable future. We provide connections to opportunities such as vocational training, financial literacy, college enrollment, and job placement services that are tailored to each residents unique interests, abilities, and work history. To support our employment initiatives, we utilize an evidence-based intervention called Individual Placement and Support (IPS), administered through a partnership with the New York State Education Department (ACCES-VR). Program Highlights: Conducted interview preparation sessionsOffered workshops on obtaining Real ID, discarding outdated paperwork, benefits/entitlements, and resume-buildingOrganized a job fair with participating employers including The Hope Program, Amazon, Bronx EOC, NYPD, Museum of Natural HistoryTenant Success Stories: Thirteen (13) tenants found employment opportunities, with eight receiving ongoing retention support from the IPS programTwo tenants maintained employment for over a yearA tenant was promoted to manager in less than a year of employmentA tenant completed their GED and gained employment at NYC HRATwo tenants moved on to more independent housing due to successful employment Arts and CultureThe restrictions placed upon people gathering during the pandemic greatly impacted arts and culture activities in FY22. Coming out of winter in 2022, however, our consultants returned to reintroduce ongoing classes, including: Photography class series, in which tenants learn to take photos and utilize their own prints in meaningful projectsField trip to the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, where tenants participated in a private demonstration. Weekly dance and movement classes Outing to Edge in Hudson Yards- the highest outdoor sky deck in the Western Hemisphere with 360-degree views of New York City