First Rural Poverty Grant awarded toward Madison County housing

Heather Confer sat in disbelief as the power shut off in her home. With no money to pay rent or her utility bill, she had no choice but to leave as a cold November approached. Just like that, her family of seven was homeless.

Hindered by Madison County's limited emergency housing options for those facing eviction or homelessness, Confer and her family were left bouncing from home to home, sleeping on the couches of various family members and friends. While staying in the 11th home within the span of a year, they were removed by Child Protective Services after exposure to a domestic violence incident during which all of their belongings were burned.

"In the blink of an eye, my family went from having everything, to nothing but each other," said Confer. "I felt like my family was drowning in a hole that I didn't know how to get ourselves out of. It was the most terrifying feeling."

Within an hour of being introduced to a case manager, Confer filled out an application and within two days she was approved for an apartment through Community Action Partnership for Madison County's (CAP's) Transitional Housing program. The organization provides assistance and opportunities to residents striving for economic self-sufficiency.

When CAP staff saw Confer's referral come through, they moved it to the top of the list due to the urgent nature and helped her retrieve new birth certificates for her children and replace clothing and other belongings they'd lost in the fire.

"Frequent moves are disruptive to children's ability to learn and grow and is shown to lead to higher rates of school truancy and recidivism," said Antara Mitra, executive director of CAP. "When you don't have a stable place to stay, it's hard to focus on anything else. Our goal is to ease that burden for families."

Madison County is one of the few counties in New York State to not have an overnight homeless shelter, and CAP's Transitional Housing and Solutions to End Homelessness (STEHP) programs are two of only a few of its kind in the region. The STEHP program works with individuals and families who are either facing eviction or homelessness in obtaining or maintaining permanent housing.

The Transitional Housing program provides agency-owned furnished apartments to homeless families with children with the focus of addressing all obstacles that led them to homelessness and working with them to obtain sustainable permanent housing in the community. Along with the housing support, both programs include intensive case management, basic life-skill coaching, and goal planning.

CAP recently received a $20,000 grant from the Central New York Community Foundation to continue its Transitional Housing and STEHP programs. Once families are situated in housing, CAP provides them with access to case management services to ensure they are linked to other resources to help increase their resiliency and self-sufficiency.

"Without a homeless shelter in Madison County, it's up to agencies like us to help, whether it is with housing or a pair of mittens for the winter," said Mitra. "Our Transitional Housing has allowed us to provide families with a stable place to sleep while helping them get back on their feet at the same time. It's been a game changer."

This is the first grant awarded from the Community Foundation's new Madison County Rural Poverty Fund. Grants from this fund will support poverty related causes in Madison County.

"Housing stability enables families to remain in the communities where they work and where children attend school," said Robyn Smith, director of strategic initiatives at the Central New York Community Foundation. "We are happy to be supporting CAP in the great work they are doing to address the lack of housing opportunities in Madison County."

Now, three years after facing eviction, Confer and her family are settled into a new home in Oneida. With the support of her husband, CAP, and her family and friends, she's overcome her own struggles of childhood trauma coupled with anxiety and depression. She is now successfully caring for her bustling family while working full-time--providing her children with the life she always envisioned for them.

"My husband and I are so thankful for the way CAP has changed our life," said Confer. "I'll never forget the moment that my children were jumping and screaming with excitement over the fact they had their OWN bed."

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