
Families
First
Social
Services
Program
How
the
Families
First
Program
Helps
Our
Latino
Community
The
mission
of
the
Families
First
Program
by
the
Spanish
American
Committee
is
to
provide
ladders
of
opportunity
that
help
low-income
individuals
and
families
break
the
cycle
of
poverty
and
become
self-sufficient.
The
Families
First
Program
takes
a
comprehensive
approach
to
support
families
who
are
struggling
to
meet
their
basic
needs.
Our
clients
gain
access
to
a
wide
range
of
culturally
competent
case
management
social
services.
Our
case
managers
and
social
workers
help
our
clients
to
navigate
community
resources.
Case
Management
-
Encouraging
individuals
to
identify
their
primary
barriers
and
seek
guidance
from
case
managers
with
prioritizing
their
needs
-
Connection
to
community
resources
for
those
experiencing
homelessness
-
Help
applying
for
public
assistance
programs
including
(but
not
limited
to):
SNAP,
Medicaid,
PRC,
Unemployment,
Social
Security,
Childcare
Vouchers,
and
Utility
Assistance
-
Distribution
of
basic
needs
items
including
toiletries,
baby
products,
school
supplies,
and
boxes
of
produce
-
We
have
partnered
with
the
McGregor
Foundation
to
provide
Spanish-speaking
senior
citizens
with
affordable
housing,
employment
assistance,
and
healthcare
services.
-
Client
advocacy,
especially
for
Spanish-only
speaking
clients
-
Spanish
translation
services
for
phone
calls
and
documents
related
to
accessing
benefits
or
basic
needs
(excludes
legal
documents
and
tax
forms)
-
Technology
assistance,
including
navigating
online
systems
-
Assistance
with
applying
for
ID
documents
including
birth
certificates,
passports,
licenses
and
replacement
social
security
cards
-
Creo
En
Ti
("I
Believe
In
You")
Women’s
Support
Group
offered
throughout
the
year
-
Community
activities
and
events
to
meet
the
current
needs
of
our
clients
-
Referrals
to
Cleveland
Furniture
Bank
of
qualifying
families
(client
must
cover
the
$180
cost
of
furniture
and
delivery)
Walk-In
Hours
-
Weekly
on
Thursday’s
from
9:00am
-
12:00pm
-
We
serve
clients
in
the
order
that
they
arrive
Domestic
Violence
Support
-
Referrals
to
community
resources
in
cases
of
domestic
violence
-
In
partnership
with
the
Journey
Center
for
Safety
&
Healing,
we
offer
weekly
onsite
domestic
violence
counseling
Lactation
Services
-
Essential
support
for
breastfeeding
mothers
-
Breastfeeding
basics
to
addressing
challenges
-
Services
offer
guidance
on
positioning,
milk
expression,
and
maintaining
a
healthy
breastfeeding
routine.
Identification
Crisis
Collaborative
-
We
provide
vouchers
that
cover
the
cost
of
ID
documents
for
income
eligible
clients
-
Support
in
navigating
the
process
when
clients
have
expired
documents
Entrepreneurship
Support
-
In
partnership
with
JumpStart
Inc.,
we
offer
onsite
bilingual
one-on-one
advising
for
businesses
of
all
stages