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Programs
The Center addresses its mission through the following programs that
provide over 1,300 assists each month:
 Emergency
Client Assistance -
This program assists clients with rent and
utility payments; provides a self-selection of food from our food
pantry, and clothing for family members from the clothing room; and
offers transportation assistance by providing bus tickets at half
price.
 Active Aging -
The Center provides a variety of daily
activities and socialization that are designed to help seniors avoid
depression and maintain independent living. Our many onsite
activities include hot lunches; health and wellness screenings; and
life-enriching classes involving guest speakers, field trips,
quilting, crafts, sewing and computer skills. An attorney
specializing in the legal needs and issues of the elderly is on staff
to provide free legal counsel. The Center's Saturday Meal
Delivery for the homebound is part of this program and is headed by
the Active Aging Coordinator.
 Legal Assistance -
The complexity of the legal system is often
an impediment to obtaining justice. The
Legal Assistance program helps clients to change the legal system from a complex
maze to an instrument of justice. The
program offers free legal advice to low-income and elderly clients in the Kansas
City metropolitan area.
 Health Maintenance -
Our Health Maintenance program is a free
service staffed by area health care professionals such as the Black
Health Care Coalition, KU School of Nursing and the UMKC School of
Dental Hygienists. This program provides mammograms; basic
health and dental screenings; nutritional information and disease
prevention education; home health assessment for the homebound, and
flu and pneumonia shots.
Agency Relationships
The Center works closely with state and local nonprofit agencies, and area
hospitals such as St. Luke's and Truman Medical Center. This collaboration
of interests results in more effective ways to best serve people in need.
We also work closely with the Salvation Army, Division of Family Services, Seton
Center, Don Bosco and Hospice Care. The Center partners with agencies that
do not have their own emergency assistance programs, such as Front Porch
Alliance in the Ivanhoe neighborhood. We assist their clients with rent,
mortgage and utility payments, food and clothing, and the Adopt a Family program
during the holiday season. The Center is a board member with the local
FEMA Food and Shelter program, and actively involved with Mid America
Coalition's Agency Relations Committee, and the Central City Cluster Group.
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