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Situated among the houses, apartments and businesses along Grand Avenue is a different kind of home.

“A lot of families are one big bill away from a financial crisis,” said Tim Shanahan, executive director of Hawthorn Hill. “Next thing they know, they are evicted and when they do not have family or friends to turn to, we are that alternative, we are their home.”

Hawthorn Hill is a nonprofit organization that offers a temporary home and case management to homeless families with children. “We are not just a home, but a help with services,” Shanahan said.

The organization has two different programs to meet various needs of the growing number of homeless families in Greater Des Moines. In 2007, New Direction Shelter served 114 families, or 337 individuals. The Home Connection Program served 25 families, or 121 individuals, in 2007. Despite the number of families served, Shanahan said that last year, the organization had to turn away 1,100 individuals.

New Direction Shelter can temporally house eight families and assists them in finding permanent homes. The case management also includes helping the families find employment and link them to community services, such as health care, child care, food stamps and other public benefits.

The Home Connection is a two-year program that provides transitional housing and case management for families. Hawthorn Hill has 15 single-family homes and three duplexes. Employees help the families become financially independent. Last year, 10 families completed the program; five bought a home and five went into a permanent rental.

The organization’s mission is to “establish and operate housing programs for homeless families with children that help them obtain permanent housing and to provide services to help families achieve economic self-sufficiency.”

In January, Hawthorn Hill Ministries and The Home Connection merged to become Hawthorn Hill. Shanahan had been serving as the executive director of both organizations. The board decided to combine the resources to better allocate its staff and produce stronger fund-raising efforts, Shanahan said.

The United Way of Central Iowa and the Polk County Housing Trust Fund are the largest financial supporters of Hawthorn Hill’s programs.