21 Jul Metro Lutheran Ministry (MLM) Receives $100,000 Grant from the Hancock Family Foundation

Metro Lutheran Ministry was recently awarded a $100,000 grant from the Hancock Family Foundation to expand its Learning to Earning program to incorporate the research and evidence-based Financial Opportunity Center (FOC) model.

Through the FOC, a Financial Coach, supported by case managers who have received training in financial coaching, will guide clients. The initial focus is on basic stability. Initial spending plans and budgets prioritize food, shelter, and transportation so clients can retain reliable employment. Clients then attend financial classes which include content from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Your Money, Your Goals, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Money Smart website. Specifically, clients learn about credit scores, what impacts their credit scores, and how to improve their credit rating. They also learn how to use the conventional banking system.

MLM’s expanded services offered through the FOC model will help families address risk factors and community challenges through comprehensive case management, financial counseling/coaching, employment services, and income supports. These services will help families develop essential skills to lift themselves out of poverty and provide a secure and stable environment for themselves and their children.

Founded in 1971, Metro Lutheran Ministry (MLM) is a Missouri 501(c)(3) nonprofit social service agency serving disadvantaged people of all races, nationalities, and religions in the urban areas of Jackson, Clay, and Platte counties in Missouri, and Wyandotte County in Kansas.  MLM uses a holistic approach to services and programs to remedy the immediate need for food, clothing, shelter, utilities, and transportation. Strengths- and outcomes-based counseling and case management guide the receptive client towards greater independence and self-reliance.