Guests

• Who We Serve
• What We Provide
• Program Expectations
• How To Refer

Who We Serve Studies report that on any given night there are more than 10,000 people in the greater Denver area that are homeless. The majority of those experiencing homelessness are families—3,500 children in our community have no place to call home. IHN serves families only. We define family broadly—a minimum of a guardian with a child under the age of 18. We do not serve individuals or couples without children.

We screen families prior to admission. A family is expected to be willing to work on a plan for self-sufficiency. If we cannot serve a family, we will make appropriate referrals. For instance, we will refer persons with a current addiction to drugs or alcohol, untreated severe mental illness, or current domestic violence.

IHN of Greater Denver operates two “rotations;” one in the central Denver metro area and one in the west metro area. We serve Denver, Jefferson, Arapahoe and Douglas counties. Each rotation serves up to five families at a time.

What We Provide IHN of Greater Denver provides 24-hour shelter, meals, and supportive services for up to 90 days. The program is a partnership with faith communities throughout the metro area; however, religious values are not imposed on our guests.

In partnership with IHN, congregations provide overnight lodging to IHN guests. Congregations usually convert religious education or meeting rooms into private or semi-private bedrooms for each family. A home-cooked dinner, sack lunches, and breakfast are provided every day. Access to shower and laundry facilities are also provided. A congregation hosts guests from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for one week. On Sundays, guests move to a new congregation. Volunteers move guests’ belongings to the next host congregation.

IHN provides families with a day site to use as their “home base” during their stay. At the day site, guests work on self-sufficiency plans and meet with staff. We provide transportation to and from the day sites and host congregations every day.

IHN offers assessment, service planning, referrals, and advocacy to our guests.  The Case Manager develops individualized “self-sufficiency” plans for each guest family.

Program Expectations Based on the model of hospitality, IHN developed Guest Guidelines that every family is expected to follow. In addition to following the guidelines, families must meet with the IHN staff on a regular basis, reporting progress on the goals from their service plan.

Guests are expected to continually work on their goals and service plan. A family’s stay in the program is contingent upon whether they follow the program guidelines and work actively on goal attainment. All school-aged children must attend school.

How To Refer Before a family is accepted into IHN of Greater Denver, a preliminary screening of the family’s eligibility is conducted.

Call us to find out if space is available. We don’t keep a waiting list. An adult member of the family must call and speak with a staff person for an initial screening. If space is available, IHN staff schedule an intake interview with the entire family. IHN requests that the referring agency provide written documentation that a family is homeless.

We cannot accept “walk-ins.”