Family Service is a nationally accredited, private, non-profit, non-sectarian agency funded by the United Way, and operating under fee-for-service contracts with a number of San Antonio’s largest outreach programs, including the Assistance League of San Antonio, the Alliance for Children and Families, and the Methodist Healthcare Ministries.
Family Service provides high quality services on more than 60 school campuses, in 8 agency offices, and within client homes. For the past 110 years, Family Service has been characterized by four traits that drive all agency programs and services: (1) an abiding dedication to families; (2) innovative research-based approaches; (3) responsible fiscal management; and (4) collaboration with community stakeholders.
Family Service has been a leader in San Antonio’s impoverished communities for decades, providing a full continuum of life supporting services including behavioral health counseling, crisis counseling, youth development, school & community engagement programming, workforce and financial empowerment, child care resource and referral, and Head Start early childhood education.
Family Service has been recognized by both Federal and State organizations as a leader in the implementation of evidence-based models, including, but not limited to the SAMHSA Science to Service Award, Best Practices Award Winner as well as serving as a research host site for multiple national level evidence-based curricula, including Multi-Dimensional Family Therapy, ACC/ACRA, Families and Schools Together, Parents as Teachers, Nurturing and Strengthening Families. Family Service is one of only ten nationally accredited child care resources/referral service centers and the only one in the state of Texas.
Located in the former H.K. Williams Elementary School, the repurposed Neighborhood Place is a collaborative community concept providing a comprehensive array of more than 40 programs and services designed to address troublesome community needs and improve outcomes for children and families.
The facility also represents a new and unique model for revitalizing an impoverished urban community, by focusing on services that strengthen families. The multi-tiered collaboration at the Neighborhood Place leverages resident leadership and public-private partnerships to deliver program services that help families work, earn, and save their way toward self-sufficiency. This model places a specific emphasis on improving the overall health of children within the family, through programs aimed at stemming child abuse, providing healthy food alternatives, and helping families better prepare children to succeed in school.
In 2014, more than 60 organizations utilized The Neighborhood Place to provide a diverse array of services to the community, including the City of San Antonio, VITA tax preparation services, H.E.B., Texas Veterans Commission, Twogether in Texas, Texas A&M, UT San Antonio, Positive Choices, Odyssey, Antioch Baptist Church, Bexar Area Agency on Aging, UT Health Science Center, Project MELD, Boystown, Immaculate Conception, Girls Inc., KLRN, Texas Council on Family, Superior Health, Holy Cross, Ballet Folklorico, AVANCE, Hispanas Unidas, Girls Scouts, Head Start, Alliance for Veterans, etc.
The majority of the people who visit The Neighborhood Place each year come from the surrounding neighborhoods, which are predominately Latino, and are extremely impoverished: 32% of all residents, and nearly 44% of households with children, live below the federal poverty line. Among adults in the targeted zip codes, fully 47% do not have a high school education.
Despite all the programs and services Family Service Association provides out of The Neighborhood Place, the facility was in drastic need of repairs, including an upgraded HVAC system, asbestos remediation, electrical upgrades, additional restrooms, security, as well as upgrades to parking, flooring and perimeter fencing.
In December, 2016, CGC and Family Service Association closed on a $6M NMTC financing to provide the financing necessary to renovate The Neighborhood Place, utilizing NMTC allocation provided by Enhanced Capital and Wells Fargo.