ATLANTA, GEORGIA, UNITED STATES, June 25, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ -- There are many organizations in the U.S. that exist to help people experiencing homelessness, but the Gateway Center is unique. This is because the Gateway Center helps in many ways, addressing the issue from every angle. However, in order to be able to continue to operate, Gateway is reaching out to the global community for help with a crowdfunding campaign through Indiegogo. After ten years in operation, it is their goal to raise enough funds to stay open for the next ten years. Keeping their doors open allows them to continue ending homelessness for over a thousand individuals each year.

The Gateway Center is an organization that helps fight to end homelessness. But unlike others, they work to meet all of the needs that homeless people experience, while partnering with the state to empower and equip their clients for a brighter future. They are proud of the number of people who move out of their care each year because those individuals are no longer in need of help and aid.

The Gateway Center's method is different. They are a "one stop shop"--providing for most fundamental needs in one place. They go further than just serving food and providing a cot like most other institutions. Instead, this organization provides places to shower, public restrooms, and access to laundry machines to help clients actively keep up hygiene, 24/7. They also provide a clothing closet for men, women, and children, phones where those in need can make calls, personal storage lockers, and much more.

Gateway's help does not end with improved living conditions, however. The center also has eight types of residential programs to help meet the individualized needs of the chronically homeless. Gateway is supplied to address the multiple and complex layered reasons for a person's homelessness rather than just one static reason. They do this by offering counseling, veteran care, mental health, addiction recovery, employment training, and more. It is rare for an organization to reach out and help a person achieve qualifications and find employment. This step is an invaluable way to help end homelessness and promote a stronger community as a whole.

Things are taken further still with Gateway Center's strong community partnerships. Unlike other places, the Department of Labor operates offices inside Gateway's building to optimize their clients' job search. There is also a Traveler’s Aid office in the building to help provide for transportation needs and reconnect people experiencing homelessness with loved ones in other states. DFACS also delivers aid for those in the community in need of food stamps, but who lack a permanent mailing address, phone, or computer. This partnership helps provide crucial transitional support that is often neglected by others. Possibly the biggest thing that is offered is health care on site. Access to health care is often nearly impossible for people who are homeless due to high costs, lack of understanding, and a common feeling of being unwelcome in a doctor's office. At Gateway, that isn't the case as they run a fully operational clinic in partnership Mercy Care for the homeless.

Sadly, the aid provided by the Gateway Center comes at a cost. The center itself covers the significant financial cost of upkeep and maintenance for their dorms, offices, services, and programs. This is where the support of the greater community comes in. 100% of contributions made through their 10th anniversary campaign will help the center cover these costs and continue to be humane in how they operate and solve these problems. The Gateway Center's ten years of humanitarian work in Atlanta have proven them to be a game-changing non-profit that the community cannot afford to lose.

Sophie Beal
Gateway Center
404.215.6593
email us here