March marches on at Clifton

Greetings from Clifton!  The needs of the month are milk, potatoes, fruit, & veggies - depending on which side of the sign at which you're looking.  

We received great news this week....  Clifton was named the state champion in February by Pathways for the greatest percentage of clients (guests) that we collaborated with partner agencies for coordination of care.  Meaning, in February 2009, 78% of our guests were referred to partner agencies by Prince and Alice for needed services.  This was the highest percentage in the state of all homeless service providers.  

In the world we live in, the staff and board of Clifton understand the importance of collaborating with other agencies for services - we need to do what we do best and then partner for the rest!  This acknowledgement from Pathways shows that we are doing just that!  Way to go Prince, Alice, and the rest of the Clifton staff!!!

Joe's Place said good-bye to Peter this month - and then waved to him as he walked next door to his new apartment.  Peter is our food coordinator and continues to turn out scrumptious vittles, so we're certainly not going to let him go very far.  Congrats Peter for completely fulfilling the mission of Clifton and living completely independently.  And we're thrilled that you're our neighbor!! 

And if that's not enough....Lee moved up and out, too.  He ventured a little further than Peter, but is still close.  Lee hooked up with the great folks from Home But Not Alone and is now permanently living with a wonderful couple who needed a little extra assistance and had extra living space.  We understand that they enjoy conversation and music, so this is a match made in heaven - literally.  

We are thrilled that the Art Institute of Atlanta recently began work on our website.  The new website should be up in mid-May.  We have a great team of five students, as well as a faculty advisor who have taken on our project.  This will totally transform how we carry our message to the community and our volunteers.  Our collective heart just explodes with excitement when we think of the possibilities.  

Many of our volunteers and donors continue to check in with us regarding our financial position in these tough times.  It goes without saying that our donations are down and the need for services are up.  But faith and fear cannot co-exist, so we're marching on in faith.  Alice continues to remind us that God hasn't brought us this far to forget about us now.  Please keep the Clifton guys in your prayers.  They're working extra hard competing for jobs, programs, and other training opportunities.  And if you'd like to make a financial investment in Clifton, please hit the "donate here" button on our website.  It's definitely one investment you can make that won't go down in value!