Programs

Listed below are snapshots of the various Front Porch Alliance programs that are working to make the neighborhood we serve safer, more comfortable and filled with a little more hope for the families living here. In addition, we have created several new programs recently that we believe complement programs already in existence.

Early Childhood Parenting Education

In this new program, weekly classes provide training for pregnant teens or mothers of newborns to provide them with the tools to raise healthy, safe, smart children. So many young women in this neighborhood have not been the product of healthy parenting, so they have no knowledge of how to best raise their children. We recognize the overwhelming need for this program as we tutor the children at Faxon who come to kindergarten woefully behind in knowing their colors and shapes, not to mention the alphabet or numbers. This program teaches them the developmental stages of their children and how to prepare them as they grow so they will be ready for school when age appropriate.

Ivanhoe Ambassadors

This was an eight-week program for youth that had them explore their community through the arts – painting, photography, creative writing and documentary film making. The results were phenomenal and gave them a new understanding and appreciation for the neighborhood in which they live.

Minor home repairs

Our volunteers continue to come each week to help residents with small improvements to their homes – leaky faucets, faulty light fixtures, rotting floors, loose railings, additional grab bars, and wheelchair ramps are some of the common problems that, when fixed, enable residents to remain in their homes a bit longer.

Gardening

175 flats of flowers are distributed to the residents each year. Two community gardens (one is huge!) are open to residents for planting and harvesting – and memberships to KC Community Gardens are purchased for residents so they can plant gardens in their own yards.

Life Skills

Classes are offered to residents in two eight-week sessions in the spring and fall. Field trips to area museums and attractions are offered on a frequent basis to get residents out of their neighborhoods to experience the community beyond. Mostly seniors participate and enjoy trips as far away as the Paxico Blues Festival in Paxico, Kansas!

Financial Literacy

Classes that cover topics such as avoiding predatory lenders, writing a will, living within a budget, repairing damaged credit and understanding new tax breaks are held monthly.

Transportation to shopping

Provided two times a month.

Computer classes

Offered on a regular basis, and a computer lab is always open for residents’ use.

Elementary School – Faxon

We focus much attention on our area elementary school, Faxon, by providing more than 90 tutors who help the children with reading and math, hosting monthly Family Fun Nights, providing enrichment opportunities for parents, and assisting in any way we can to enhance the education of the children and the spirit of the school.

Food Distribution

Food is distributed to 120 seniors and families each month on the last Wednesday, often at a time when food stamps have run out and pantries are getting bare.

Youth Programs

Our many youth programs include:

• Academy of Opportunity, an entrepreneurial education program for youth ages 14-16
• Teen Talk, a Wednesday gathering at which up to 35 kids come to discuss problems that are affecting their lives from drugs to gangs to relationships and beyond
• Teens First, a Saturday gathering of kids to do community service projects, take field trips, experience an art class or just hang out together
• Young Investment Club, a group of 10 select youth who are learning about the stock exchange and, through a grant, have been given $250 each in real money to invest
• Boys and Girls Mentoring Group
• Life Skills Classes on Saturdays
• Youth Leadership Program, training young people to be block contacts for their neighborhood

On the horizon

With the recent addition of a part-time program manager, we are formulating a comprehensive healthy lifestyles program that will include exercise, nutritious food information and diet encouragement.