Hillcrest Transitional Housing of Eastern Jackson County

Hillcrest Ministries is a 90-day transitional housing program that helps a homeless family achieve self-sufficiency through a high accountability budgeting and life skills educational curriculum while living in a fully furnished, rent-free apartment. Families that enter our program have over a 95 percent chance of being self-sufficient upon graduating the program and over an 80 percent chance of remaining self-sufficient after 5 years.

Lee's Summit Subaru has donated over $229,000 to Hillcrest Transitional Housing since 2008, as of 2024. Making a positive impact in the peoples lives in the community in which we live and work is our pledge. Not because it's good for business, but because its the right thing to do

Who is Hillcrest Transitional Housing?

• The Hillcrest Transitional Housing program is the most successful program of its kind in Kansas City, and has been nationally recognized for Best Practices by the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Scott Cooper was awarded the 2004 Stuart Whitney Award for Advocacy from the Homeless Services Coalition of Kansas City. Hillcrest is proud of a 37-year record of success.
• Hillcrest - Eastern Jackson County graduates 42 families a year to self-sufficiency. We aren't just moving an adult to self-sufficiency, but an entire family, thus breaking the cycle of poverty for generations of families.
• Hillcrest is extremely EFFICIENT and EFFECTIVE; utilizing over 500 volunteers a year to renovate old apartment buildings and provide professional services (doctors, dentists, car mechanics, tow truck drivers, printers, etc), Hillcrest keeps operating costs down by stretching every donated dollar into ten dollars of services and boasts a rate of success unmatched by other transitional programs!
• Families in the program are being led to self-sufficiency -- they are moving into housing of their own choosing, are no longer receiving welfare dollars, and are maintaining full time employment. The families are held tightly accountable through a weekly evaluation system and are subject to an "all needs/no wants" approach to budgeting. In other words, they are not spending money on fast food, sodas, or luxuries.
• The Kansas City Homeless Hotline reports that 53% of the homeless population in Kansas City is a child at an average age of 7 years old. This is evident at Hillcrest in that 75% of our families are singles mothers with an average of 2-3 children per household.
• Just to be considered "in poverty" by the national guidelines, a family could make as much as $9.36 an hour wages. Most of the families that enter Hillcrest make $7.00 an hour or less.

What does a donor provide to a family through their gift?

• Rent and utility free housing in a beautifully renovated apartment.
• A food and toiletry pantry that will cover all of their needs while in the program.
• Intensive one-on-one budget counseling to teach families how to budget "to the penny" every week on an "all needs/no wants" system that focuses on growing budgeting skills, paying down debt, and developing an emergency fund.
• Goal setting, problem solving, and self discipline skills with help from a hands-on case manager, who will encourage and require each family to take responsibility for their own actions and life. Case loads are small to ensure the case-manager can take time to delve into every aspect of the families needs.
• Life-skills classes dealing with such practical topics as parenting, nutrition, legal issues, childcare, healthy living, stress management, goal setting, etc.
• Community living classes that discuss interpersonal skills, landlord-tenant and neighbor relationships, fire safety, home upkeep, etc.
• Dental, medical, and eye care for the entire family.
• Volunteers who provide haircuts, auto repair, tow service, emergency transportation, babysitting, budget counseling, tax preparation, etc.
• Donated work uniforms, IDs, vehicles, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Birthday presents, household goods, furniture, and food.
• Linkage to programs to receive their GED, smoking cessation, toiletries, and professional services (mechanics, doctors, dentists, barbers).
• Children's programming such as tutoring, field trips, mentoring, summer camps, and other youth programs to help them grow up to become self sufficient adults.
• Pastoral care focused on listening to the families in their need, not on pressuring them to earn help through a false conversion assent.

Hillcrest Success Stories

Kathy was a single mom who had a simple dream - to have a normal life for her and her seven-year-old son Jake. But past sexual abuse and a life of drugs had closed many doors. Even an attempt at getting a college education had ended in failure, leaving her with no degree and a student loan that would take over thirty years to pay off, even if she had a job. Then she heard about a program searching for families in her situation in Eastern Jackson County that might help her. Kathleen and her son applied and moved into the Hillcrest Ministries of Eastern Jackson County transitional housing program. And though she wished for the best, she really didn't have hope that her life would significantly change for the better.

First came the job. With help from her Case Manager, Kathy found work at a printing company. Next she needed to learn how to manage that new income, and though it was difficult at first, she became proficient at creating a weekly budget and reconciling her financial transactions. Her son, who had been struggling at school, began to experience academic growth simply from living in a more stable environment. Meanwhile, with help from her budget counselor, Kathy began formulating a debt-repayment plan. Though it would take several years to become completely debt-free, she had a workable plan. For the first time, Kathy had hope that she could achieve a normal life again…but there was one piece missing. In the last week of her stay at Hillcrest, that final piece fell into place - Kathy became a "soccer mom." Being able to afford putting her son on a youth soccer team was the embodiment of normalcy for Kathy and her cries of joy were heard throughout the office when she came home to celebrate, crying "I'm a soccer mom! I'm a soccer mom!" For this mom and son, a simple dream of soccer punctuated a far greater accomplishment of self-sufficiency that will last far beyond the end of the soccer season.

As a family-owned new car dealer in Kansas City, Lee's Summit Subaru is proud to be a part of the Kansas City community, and we think it's important to give back to our friends and neighbors. That's why we support a variety of community outreach programs, including Hillcrest Transitional Housing of Eastern Jackson County.

Hillcrest Transitional Housing is a 90-day transitional housing program that not only gives homeless families a safe and comfortable place to stay, but also helps them to achieve self-sufficiency. How do they do it? Through a nationally-recognized and award-winning program of high-accountability budgeting and life skills education that has a 37-year record of repeated success. In fact, families who enter Hillcrest Transitional Housing's program have a 95% chance of being self-sufficient at graduation, and an 80% chance of remaining so in 5 years' time! That's an impressive track record, and Lee's Summit Subaru is proud to help support the fantastic work that Hillcrest Transitional Housing is doing in Eastern Jackson County and across the region!

Helping the Homeless in Kansas

Homelessness isn't something that only affects adults. In fact, 53% of the homeless population of Kansas City is made up of children, with an average age of seven. That's why Hillcrest Transitional Housing helps families, not just adults, to get the shelter, resources, and education they need to be successful and self-sufficient. Through Hillcrest Transitional Housing, homeless families receive housing in a fully renovated apartment, food and toiletries, budget counseling, and training in everything from goal setting, problem solving, and life-skills. They also have access to dental, medical, and vision care, as well as children's programming and volunteers who provide services like haircuts, auto repair, and more!

Nationally Recognized, Locally Focused

Hillcrest Transitional Housing has been nationally recognized by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, and was awarded the 2004 Stuart Whitney Award for Advocacy from the Homeless Services Coalition of Kansas City. While they're proud of their national credentials, their focus is on helping families in the Kansas City area, and they're even more proud of the fact that they manage to graduate 42 local families every year!

Helping families means more than just getting them into secure and comfortable housing and helping them find ways to remain self-sufficient in the future; it means breaking the cycle of poverty for future generations by helping homeless kids reach new opportunities!

Won't You Join Lee's Summit Subaru in Helping?

Lee's Summit Subaru is proud to support Hillcrest Transitional Housing in their quest to help Kansas City area families break the cycle of poverty, become self-sufficient, and stay that way. But we can't do it alone. If you'd like to help Hillcrest Transitional Housing, you can do so by donating here. Or contact Lee's Summit Subaru at (816) 251-8600 to learn about other ways that you can get involved today!