EDEN

EDEN is a Roslindale organization working to break the cycle of family homelessness and multigenerational poverty. Its starting point is that shelters and subsidized housing alone are a temporary fix, because they do not address why families end up back in shelter. EDEN collaborates with shelters to deliver programs that build stability, reduce chronic stress and isolation, and prepare families for long-term housing and financial independence.

Its Families Empowered Program was designed using an evidence-based approach informed by the experience of founder and CEO Dr. Jehu Leconte, who has worked directly on reducing returns to homelessness. A second program, T.H.R.I.V.E., provides occupational skills training geared to the healthcare job market and helps single parents secure stable employment. EDEN measures success beyond job placement, following participants’ long-term career progress, and builds hiring pathways with employer partners.

What to Know

• The work responds to a Boston Foundation finding that 67 percent of families return to shelter within three years of being housed.
• Employer partners include Boston University, Boston Medical Center and ModivCare.
• T.H.R.I.V.E. stands for Training and Helping Residents in Valuable Employment.