Unity Care Group receives grant for Transitional Housing Program

Unity Care Group, Inc. has been awarded $7,500 from the Cisco Systems Foundation to continue providing affordable, stable, transitional housing for homeless young adults while they are going to school, receiving job training, securing sustainable employment, or learning and practicing skills for independent living.

This grant will help Unity Care continue to address the mental and physical health needs of youth aging out of foster care, while helping them learn the developmental skills they need to survive as indpendent adults. The Cisco Systems Foundation grant will assist in providing food, clothing and incentive items for the youth in the transitional housing program and part of it will be used for counseling and case management.

"In California, we have over 100,000 kids in foster care and 10 to 15 percent are aging out each year. They leave at 18 and have nowhere to go. They end up on the streets struggling to survive," said André Chapman founder and CEO of Unity Care Group. "The generosity of local supporters like Cisco Systems Foundation helps keep youth off of public assistance and out of the justice system."

About the Transitional Housing Program
Each year thousands of children nationwide leave foster care at age 18 or 19 without a formal connection to families, and with minimal independent living skills. Teens in group and foster homes are often recovering from chemical addictions, and many come from homes with physical, sexual and substance abuse. Without family, financial or emotional support, these young adults lack basic education, have few marketable skills and have little experience living on their own.

At age 18, they become homeless and are not prepared to live independently. Unity Care's Transitional Housing Program offers affordable and stable housing in Santa Clara and Monterey counties to young adults aged 18-21, as well as a host of independent living services that foster self-sufficiency.

"At Cisco, we believe in building strong communities in which every individual has access to quality education, the means by which to live, and the opportunity to succeed," said Sylvia Allen, Cisco Systems' Senior Director, Corporate Responsibility. "As a company, we are proud to support these local non-profits who share our values, our vision and our goal to build lasting solutions that will improve the lives of those in the community."