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The Greater Easley Chamber of Commerce hosted its 76th Annual Meeting & Awards Celebration on March 14 at Tri-County Technical College-Easley Campus. Sponsored by Truliant Federal Credit Union, the event honored several businesses and individuals for their leadership and community service. Among those awards, Family Promise of Pickens County was honored as the 2024 Non-Profit of the Year, which recognizes an organization that has demonstrated a strong effort in successfully using its organizational mission and resources to improve the quality of life in Pickens County, along with working in close partnership with the business community to achieve the desired results. In 2012, United Way of Pickens County was concerned about the homeless issue in Pickens County, especially involving children, and decided to pursue a shelter model to house families in churches on a rotational schedule. Families would stay at the churches at night, but during the day, would attend a Day Center to take advantage of resources for case management, employment, and financial education. Later that year, Family Promise of Pickens County was formally established to serve homeless families with children under 18 years of age with the goal to move these families to self-sufficiency, while using community resources that already existed. By 2014, they had successfully secured the support of 15 host churches throughout Pickens County, later securing an additional eight church partners. Also in 2014, the organization hired their first Executive Director to begin the housing rotation with the churches. And in 2016, Family Promise oved to their current location at Stewart Drive in Easley. After a couple of years, the ministry also obtained a few transitional housing sites. But when the churches closed due to COVID, so did the housing rotation model. But Family Promise shifted gears and, through a grant, launched a new homeless prevention program, which has been successful in keeping hundreds of people in their homes. In 2023, Family Promise served over 200 individuals representing 73 families in Pickens County. And in 2024, they hope to restart the housing rotation with local churches. In the meantime, they are also exploring alternative ways to shelter families, with their board of directors considering construction of two duplexes on their Stewart Drive property, as well as securing community partners to build additional transitional houses. Family Promise of Pickens County is a ministry that collaborates with many local agencies, schools, churches, and businesses to help decrease child homelessness. Please join Greater Easley Chamber of Commerce in honoring Family Promise of Pickens County as the 2024 Non-Profit of the Year.