It was a humble beginning. Twenty homeless women and children arrived on the steps of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Midtown Sacramento seeking shelter and food. They were welcomed. Thirty-two years later the independent non-profit Saint John’s Program for Real Change is a transformative residential program providing structure, mental health therapy, alcohol and drug counseling, parental education, budgeting classes, and hands-on employment training to support women and children in making real and lasting change in their lives.

Women in the Saint John’s Program spend up to 18 months on this journey of transformation, a journey filled with many stories of success.  Not all will succeed, however.  Entry into Saint John’s Program is limited, and each step is extremely rigorous.  But those who see it through are rewarded with happy and productive lives for themselves and for their children.

All services are on-site and designed to centralize support ensuring the much needed accountability, efficiency and coordination. Saint John’s cost to move one person from homelessness to family sustainability is $14,000. That is $35,000 less than Sacramento County pays to carry a homeless individual in its system for one year. The long-term, generational and financial impact of Saint John’s “teaching them to fish” approach is immeasurable.

We serve nearly 1,000 homeless women and children in a year and we do it with a $6 million operating budget. And only 30% of it comes through government sources.

Saint John’s is breaking the cycle of poverty and equipping women for the journey to self-sustainability.  But the numbers and needs of impoverished single-mother-led families continue to grow in the Sacramento region, resulting in a daily wait list of more than 300 women and children… in spite of Saint John’s continued expansion.

We need your support to help us continue our mission. We need your support to help us achieve our five-year goal to launch the replication of this life-changing program nationwide.

Please join us on this journey of success and know there are so many ways you can join in…

When you donate money, goods, and/or time, you are opening the doors to nearly 1000 women and children annually so they can live in a safe, structured, and predictable environment while they develop the tools to make lasting change in their lives.  Every cent and every second you give supports them in this effort. You can rest assured your contributions will be put to uncommonly good use.

DONATE MONEY OR GOODS:

Given that 30% of our funding comes from government sources, it is obvious that Saint John’s relies heavily on donations from our community.  Your financial support of Saint John’s is crucial.  We also need your support in providing clothing for school and/or for job interviews, diapers or feminine hygiene products, and/or an unused vehicle.  These are all donations that will make an enormous impact on a woman or child’s life.

VOLUNTEER: 

Prepare and serve a meal in our kitchen, volunteer at an event, assist in our administrative offices, mentor a mother, help in our donation center or spend time rocking babies in our child development center. 

DINE WITH US:

By dining at Plates Midtown, Plates Café, or by choosing Plates to cater your next event, you are not only eating fresh and locally sourced and fabulous food, you are supporting the employment training of Saint John’s women, contributing to the success of the program as a whole. 100% of proceeds directly support women working to recuperate and reengineer their lives.

JOIN THE CIRCLE:

The Saint John’s Circle is a fundraising and awareness-building auxiliary group for Saint John’s. Members are active volunteers committed to the growth of Saint John’s. They organize special events and provide essential support. All they’re missing is you.

MAKE AN ESTATE GIFT:

Your legacy will leave an enormous impact on women and children in need for decades to come.

For more information, please contact info@saintjohnsprogram.org

Saint John’s Program for Real Change Nonprofit, 501(c)(3)

Tax ID: 68-0132934

Saintjohnsprogram.org

916-453-1482