2. Our mission is to empower families to
transition from homelessness to
self-sufficiency
OUR MISSION

3.  Los Angeles is the homeless capital of the United States
 Approx. 254,000 people in LA County experience
homelessness every year
 Approx 82,000 people experience homelessness
on any given night.
 Nearly 1/3 of LA County’s homeless population are
individuals in homeless families.
 La County’s homeless population includes more than
9,500 families
 The cost of one family’s first homeless episode can cost
the government upwards of $20,000.
HOMELESS IN LOS ANGELES

4. THE CYCLE OF HOMELESSNESS

5. Our program addresses a significant gap:
o Little to no support systems exist for families once
they get into housing. This often results in repeat
homelessness or “flat lining”.
o Imagine LA addresses this gap by utilizing the vast
resources of faith communities, companies and other
committed organizations who want to provide more
than “band-aid” charity in their local community.
THE NEED

6. HOW?
We do this by facilitating a two-year, volunteer mentorship
program that matches families with Volunteer Teams from faith
communities, companies and other committed organizations.
The match creates consistent relationships that empower the
families to move toward self-sufficiency.

7. “Every religion has a scriptural mandate to
help the poor and unfortunate. The highest
form of these efforts is to teach people to
fish, not just give them a fish.”
-Rabbi Kenneth Chasen
Leo Baeck Temple
WHY WE STARTED WITH
FAITH COMMUNITIES?

8. SO, HOW
EXACTLY DOES
THE PROGRAM
WORK?

9. Together, each family and their matched
Volunteer Team work toward three main goals:
o Maintain housing
o Attain self-sufficiency
o Ensure that every member of the family is thriving
THE PROCESS

10. Imagine LA leverages
resources from the entire
community to provide the
support families need to
permanently exit
homelessness.
In this way, we are uniting
Los Angeles to end
homelessness, one family
at a time.
A Community Solution

11. Imagine LA:
Manages the Match
Provides Case Management
Utilizes Community Resources
Volunteer Team:
Mentoring
Life Skills
Tutoring and Resources
Family + ILA + Team:
Assesses the Family’s Needs
Sets Achievable Goals
Creates Results!
IMAGINE LA’S MODEL

12. We are focused and committed to empowering not only
our families, but also all of our volunteers and the
greater Los Angeles community
 Imagine LA’s program staff has decades of experience in social
service and provides:
 Family screening
 Case management services for families
 Access to community resources
 Volunteer training & management
 Homeless sensitivity education
 A safe and step-by-step, “turn-key” program that requires minimal involvement from
organizations
 Imagine LA values communication
 Weekly team conference calls
 Fun face-to-face events
 Regular reporting that can be shared with entire organization
OUR SIDE OF THE BARGAIN...

13. DO:
 Build a Volunteer Team (5-10 members)
 Attend training, complete a background check and operate within
Imagine LA’s guidelines
 Help their family equip their new home
 Provide Family Sponsorship Funds
 Come alongside their matched family in a consistent relationship
DON’T:
 Do not proselytize (they may invite, but not require the family to
attend faith-related events)
 Do not give money or gift cards directly to the family
OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS
COMMITMENT...

14. Co-Leads
Co-Leads (2)
Mentors
Mentors
MentorsOne-to-One
Mentors
Financial Literacy/
“Budget Mentor”
Historian
Tutors
Tutors
Tutors
Tutors
TutorsHealth and
Nutrition Team
Spec
Special Projects Teams
e.g.: Transportation, “Give the Parents a Break”, Individualized Education
Plan (IEP) Advocate, Disability Specialist, Career Coach, etc.
*Please note, the size of your team will depend on the size and needs of your family.
VOLUNTEER TEAM STRUCTURE

15. IT’S WORKING!
100% of current and
graduated families
maintain permanent
housing (nationally, 25%
of homeless families
return to homelessness)
75% of families
increase their household
earned income by
graduation
100% of participants
(adults and children)
receive annual medical
and dental exams
33% of school-aged
participants improve their
grades as a result of
academic assistance
(e.g. tutoring, IEPs)
100% of non-school-
aged children meet age-
appropriate
developmental standards
100% of families report
improved conflict
resolution skills within the
family unit

16. Since starting in 2007 we have…
o Served 54 Families
o 11 successful graduations – families self-sufficient and thriving!
o Partnered with over 30 Program Partners including churches,
synagogues, companies, and even a mosque!
o Many now sponsoring their 2nd and 3rd families through the program!
o Continued growth in funding and families served
o Our revenue is increasing while our cost per family is decreasing which
means we can help more families
o Impacted the lives of hundreds of volunteers
OVERALL RESULTS

17. Maria and Danny
Recoandhisboys
.
SUCCESS STORIES

18. o Sustain the program in order to help more families
o Engage more of the LA community by scaling the
program to offering the model to more companies and
committed organizations through our Corporate
Outreach Initiative
oIncrease communications efforts and brand
awareness in Los Angeles
o Help other cities implement the Imagine LA model
WHAT’S NEXT?

19. OUR PARTNERS
•All Saints’ Episcopal Church (Beverly Hills)
•All Saints Church of Pasadena (Pasadena)
•Bel Air Presbyterian Church (Bel Air)
•Beth Shir Shalom (Santa Monica)
•Congregation Tikvat Jacob (Manhattan Beach)
•Cornerstone West LA (West LA)
•Hollywood Seventh-Day Adventist Church
(Hollywood)
•Holy Family Catholic Church (South Pasadena)
•Temple Kol Tikvah (Woodland Hills)
•Lake Avenue Church (Pasadena)
•Leo Baeck Temple (Los Angeles)
•New Life Christian Church (Glendale)
•St. Cross Episcopal Church (Hermosa Beach)
•Saint Mark United Methodist (South LA)
•St. Mark’s Episcopal Church (Glendale)
•Stephen S. Wise Temple (Bel Air)
•Temple Beth Hillel (North Hollywood)
•Temple Emanuel (Beverly Hills)
•TOMS
•Valley Beth Shalom (Encino)
•Wilshire Blvd. Temple (West LA)
•Zion Temple Community Church (South LA)
PROGRAM PARTNERS:

20. OUR PARTNERS
•Westwood Transitional Village / The
Salvation Army
•Upward Bound House
•L.A. Family Housing
•Department of Public Social
Service/CalWORKs
•Door of Hope
•Beyond Shelter
•Family Promise
•Miriam’s House
•US Department of Veterans’Affairs (VA)
•Good Shepherd Center
•Harvest Home
•Hope Gardens/Union Rescue Mission
•The Ahmanson Foundation
•Bank of America
•Bel Air Presbyterian Church
•Sean Burton/Homes for LA Families
•California Community Foundation
•The Capital Group Companies Charitable
Foundation
•Capital Source Bank
•The John W. Carson Foundation
•CB Richard Ellis
•The Carl & Roberta Deutsch Foundation
•The Carrie Estelle Doheny Foundation
•First Republic Bank
•GUESS?, Inc.
•The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
•The Hoag Family Foundation
•The Jewish Community Foundation
•Mickey Kantor
•The Karisma Foundation
•Wells Fargo
•The Weingart Foundation
•The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation
FAMILY REFERRAL PARTNERS: FUNDING PARTNERS:

21. The Process:
1. Participation supported by head of either the faith community or
company
2. Letter of Intent (LOI) signed
3. Recruit team (start with Co-Leads and Budget Mentor)
4. Volunteer Training and background checks (mandatory)
5. Meet with potential family (Co-Leads and leadership meet family
prior to official full-team “Meet-n-Greet”)
6. MOU signed/Matched with a family
7. Begin helping the family to achieve their goals!
HOW TO GET INVOLVED

22. www.imaginela.org
Please join us in
ending homelessness, one family at a time.
THANK YOU!
5455 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1001
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323.944.0210 | 323.944.0215