Soroptimist House of Hope Inc

BACKGROUND (brief history, mission, purpose, etc.)

Soroptimist House of Hope, Inc. (SHOH) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1981 to provide recovery programs to chemically dependent women in need of housing and support to establish clean and sober lifestyles and rebuild their lives.  SHOH established the first substance abuse recovery program in Riverside County designed especially for women.  Over the past 33 years, SHOH has helped over 3,000 women through a comprehensive and effective social model program offering housing, companionship and guidance, therapeutic activities, and a structured daily routine that enables them to establish and maintain sober, healthy, and productive lives. 

We provide residential substance abuse recovery programs for women at our Desert Hot Springs Recovery Facility and our Banning Transitional Living Home.  In 2013-2014, we served 48 women at our Recovery Facility (providing 45 days of housing, 12-step meetings, counseling, and life skills and planning workshops) and 9 women at the Transitional Living Home (providing up to 180 days of continued housing to complete the recovery process). 

Our objective is to help each client recover from substance use disorders, build a sense of self-worth, and develop the skills to live sober and productive lives.  By helping women to lead substance-free lives, SHOH contributes to the improvement of their physical and emotional health and supports their efforts to achieve self-sufficiency, which in turn reduces their reliance on public social and healthcare services as well as their likelihood of living in poverty or being incarcerated.  The ultimate measure of our success is witnessing the transformation of our clients into successful women who are free of the burden of substance use disorders and are leading healthy and happy lives.

How We Plan to Use Our Funds Raised

This year, Soroptimist House of Hope plans to use the funds raised from the Give BIG campaign to provide an optimal physical environment for our clients that supports their good health and successful recovery, which will positively impact our clients, their families, and the community. We will do so by replacing the current HVAC (Heating/Ventilation/Air Conditioning) system at our Desert Hot Springs Recovery Facility.  The current system is over 10 years old, is not energy efficient, and is in need of frequent repairs.  A new system is needed to provide reliable and effective comfort for our residents and staff members in a desert where the temperatures can reach up to 120 degrees in the summertime. 

The Desert Healthcare District has offered Soroptimist House of Hope a challenge grant to pay for one-half of the total cost ($6,590) of a new air conditioning/heating system. Our goal is to meet the districts challenge and raise $3,295 through Give BIG Riverside County on November 13th, so that we may receive the grant and replace the old system.