Page 2 - 2020 Annual Report

Dear friends, fleeing domestic or sexual violence sup-

port with security deposits, rent and
other housing costs for up to two years.
Leadership Team This past year has been remarkable. the model allows survivors to choose the
Amanda Cochrane housing that works for them and then
ExECutivE DirECtor We are living through a global health pandemic. Our political world is more divisive and have the time and space to develop a plan
tracey Doore explosive than ever. It’s a time of upheaval and dissent and a time of deep uncertainty. to maintain that housing after the Transi-
FinAnCE DirECtor tional Housing timeline is over.
vaunne Masse With all that is tumultuous going on in our world, we at Umbrella have been compelled to Last year, our Transitional Housing Pro-
DirECtor oF EConoMiC remain a constant and consistent presence, in order to support those who need us — now
EMpowErMEnt more than ever. While some of our services have gone virtual this year as a result of CO- gram was able to support six survivors
Amanda McFarland and their children with financial support
AssoCiAtE DirECtor oF ADvoCACy VID-19, they have all remained intact and are in fact, busier and more innovative than ever. towards housing of their choice. Many of
south & FAMily BAsED sErviCEs the households had little or no income
roxie rivard In response to the growing need for safe housing for survivors with whom we work we and most were single mothers just starting
DirECtor oF ADvoCACy north greatly expanded our housing programming including adding emergent as well as longer- out on their own. they had been living in
henekis stoddard term housing options. We have added a chat line for people to access our support which is our emergency shelters or motels and one
DirECtor oF soCiAl ChAngE
an option that is especially important to have when you are unable to leave the house or was living in her vehicle with her children.
talk on the phone. Home, safe home. the successes we have observed in the
We have also had the opportunity to step up to meet pressing needs. Our Cornucopia 8 months this program has operated
have been profound — especially because
program greatly expanded the production of home-delivered meals to be able to meet home is a concept we think about a lot at umbrella. so many people with they occurred in the midst of a global
the growing request from home-bound seniors. Our Kingdom Child Care Connection staff whom we work struggle with having one as they navigate living in poverty as pandemic!”
Board memBers worked tirelessly to understand the ever-changing state recommendations and require- a result of their low wage job or barriers that cause them to remain without
ilene Dickinson much income at all. others may have a house to live in but their sense of We have seen clients obtain full-time
sECrEtAry ments in order to be a resource for the community, stressed about their childcare options. “home” has been shattered due to an abusive partner. Helping our clients find employment now that they have a secure
susan gresser Family Room staff provided a variety of options to enable supervised visitation including in- their way to a home has been a special focus at Umbrella over the last year. place for their children to reside. several
prEsiDEnt person, phone, and video meetings, understanding that consistency in child-parent contact, were able to get childcare for their chil-
Carol lyon even when there are difficult family dynamics, is essential. dren since their housing was now stable.
trEAsurEr shelter in the storm and well being. As an added bonus, the one was able to focus on her substance
Erin narey This year, though marked by unprecedented challenges, also offered hope. In April we had Often one of the biggest barriers to some- shift from expensive motels to shelter misuse treatment and was enrolling in a
viCE prEsiDEnt to make the decision to cancel our fundraising gala. Uncertain about how we would be able one being able to move on from an abu- apartments has saved the state valuable healthcare training program and another
susan Mescher to raise funds to meet our mission we called on you, our community of supporters. You sive situation is housing. While Umbrella funding. was able to resume higher education.
Aimee pascale stepped up and donated generously, making our virtual fundraising campaign a huge suc- has maintained emergency shelter space Another survivor who has the dream of
Jane pompeo cess. From gifts of $5 to gifts of $10,000, you gave meaningfully and ensured our essential in st. Johnsbury and newport for years, Finding a Stable Home becoming a homeowner one day attained
liz prohaska work continued in the NEK. Even more, you helped spark hope that as a community we can it has not been enough to meet the de- Emergency shelter moves survivors housing despite her problematic rental
history that was a result of the abuse she
Dale steen weather whatever challenges and hardships come our way. mand. Consequently, survivors who need- closer to finding a home, but as we as- endured.*
Danielle sussman turo ed emergency housing had the option of sessed our housing program this past
accessing local motels through the state’s
On behalf of the staff and Board of Umbrella, thank you for your continued partnership system. while this is an important safety year, there was still more to do. Looking Ahead
which enables us to serve our shared community. net, it did not always meet the needs for Once people have safely transitioned to The path to finding a home for survivors

In Gratitude, the vulnerable populations with whom emergency housing, the search for the and their children is not easy and chal-
we work and sometimes deterred them next step begins. umbrella’s housing Ad- lenges remain in our region. there is not
from leaving their abusive partners. vocates work with each survivor on their enough affordable housing to meet de-
plan to find home and begin the process
Amanda Cochrane, Executive Director in the fall of 2019, umbrella made an of- of healing and rebuilding their lives. mand even when there are enough vouch-
fer to the state to expand our emergency ers and financial support. Despite these
shelter program and they accepted. As we looked around at the available enduring and systemic challenges, we re-
through this expansion, virtually all of resources for people in the region we main encouraged by the strength and per-
the people fleeing domestic or sexual determined more was needed for sur- severance we have witnessed among the
violence in our region can access emer- vivors. in the fall of 2019, we got word survivors with whom we work. we owe it
gency shelter in a home like environment that we had received a Transitional to them to continue looking for ways for
in their community. While we also offer Housing grant from the Office of Vio- them to find “home” and will continue to
motel rooms as overflow or in special lence Against women, a program of the do so in the coming years.
circumstances, we believe that this shift US Department of Justice. With this new
has greatly impacted survivors’ safety funding, we were able to offer people *Details altered to protect anonymity.

2020 annUaL reporT 3