The Opportunity Village
The Opportunity Village is a year-long homeless shelter program developed by The Dream Center. Using a “tiny house” model, the village provides 23 tiny houses and 10 transitional houses to shelter homeless women and children. The comprehensive program requires residents to take measurable action steps to regain their health, specifically in the areas of physical, financial, behavioral, spiritual, and workforce development. Throughout this year-long program, residents work through an Individualized Success Plan (ISP) for themselves and each of their children, with the help of their Case Manager, Financial Coach, and Care Coach to achieve their goals. Upon graduation from the program, residents are working, have reliable transportation, savings, and are offered the opportunity to enter the Bridge program. Bridge residents live in a transitional house for another year, while working and maintaining connection with The Opportunity Village team. In 2016, students from three local high schools EACH raised $15,000 to sponsor a tiny house and inspired the entire community to support this project. The success of The Opportunity Village has attracted the attention of organizations nationwide, many of whom have visited The Dream Center to learn how to duplicate the program model.
If you would like to donate items to the Opportunity Village, please check out our Amazon wish list below.
Raise a Village Day
On October 22, 2016,
Make a Difference Day brought over
500 volunteers from all over the state to build the first homeless shelter program of its kind in the upstate of South Carolina.