• Easy drop-off for gently used donations
• Pop-up resale shopping with unique finds
• Music and entertainment
• Food available for purchase
• Opportunity to connect and learn more about the nonprofit’s mission

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The designation reflects Center for Transforming Lives’ ongoing commitment to creating a workplace culture where employees are empowered to succeed at work and at home. From paid parental leave to mental health support to discounted childcare, the organization continues to invest in policies that strengthen its team and its mission.

Photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming LIves

“Being recognized as a Best Place for Working Parents® is a powerful affirmation of our values as a social service nonprofit,” said Carol Klocek, CEO of Center for Transforming Lives. “Our work focuses on supporting single mothers and their children, and that begins with fostering a workplace where our own team members — many of whom are parents and caregivers — feel supported and valued. Family friendly policies aren’t just part of our culture, they’re a reflection of our mission. We are proud to create a workplace where families can thrive, and to invest in our greatest asset, which is our incredible team.”

The Best Place for Working Parents® initiative honors businesses and organizations that meet criteria across 10 evidence-based policies proven to benefit working parents and positively impact business outcomes. Center for Transforming Lives’ family friendly benefits include a generous paid time off program, paid parental leave, employee assistance program, mental health support, continuing education tuition assistance, discounted childcare and more.

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Designed to build financial well-being for the entire community, this unique small business incubator pairs commonly needed resources along with free drop-in child care, workshops and other education opportunities to empower women and families to thrive economically.

Teaching Kitchen
Photo courtesy of CTL

Riverside Coworking is open to all participants of Center for Transforming Lives along with the general public. The goal is to create an ecosystem of entrepreneurs who can inspire and support each other. Affordable pricing and scholarships keep the space accessible to all.

Located in the non-profit’s new Riverside Campus headquarters, Riverside Coworking offers:

• A variety of desk memberships as well as access to meeting and training rooms
• A commercial kitchen with 24-hour access and storage options
• A teaching kitchen that’s ideal for small classes or creating content
• A makerspace with a laser engraver, 3-D printer, Cricut, heat press and embroidery and sewing machines
• Fully equipped audio and visual studios, with editing bay
• Free drop-in child care, available for parents working on-site, a first-of-its-kind amenity
• A professional mailing address, phone booths, printing and copying, WiFi, snacks, coffee and a wellness room.

Entrepreneurs can also take advantage of free classes and other events that build skills, community and connection.

Coworking
Photo courtesy of CTL

Center for Transforming Lives’ “Level Up” small business program has supported nearly 200 low-income entrepreneurs in launching and expanding their own businesses and building financial well-being. The small business cohort includes specialized coaching in business planning, legal structures, financial management, marketing and more. Upon completion of the program, participants can apply for a matched savings small business grant of up to $5,000. Launching a social enterprise geared toward supporting entrepreneurs was the next natural step for the non-profit: an estimated 100 small businesses will be created or expanded annually through small business programming and the new coworking space.

“When we invest in entrepreneurs, we invest in the future,” said Carol Klocek, chief executive officer of Center for Transforming Lives. “Affordable business resources aren’t just helpful, they’re essential, especially for low-income entrepreneurs. Access to these resources, training and support can mean the difference between an idea that fades and a business that flourishes.”

Podcast Studio
Photo courtesy of CTL

Small businesses create local jobs, boost spending within the community, keep taxes close to home and diversify the marketplace. For mothers with young children, entrepreneurship can also be a path out of poverty; with the right support, a side hustle can turn into a small business that enables a family to build wealth for generations to come. Riverside Coworking is a community where work and family can thrive together.

“The majority of our participants are single mothers with young children,” Klocek said. “By combining child care and other support services within the small business incubator, we’re unlocking the potential of parents as innovators. We’re empowering mothers to pursue their dreams so they can thrive. The two-generation approach nurtures mothers, who are building change, and their children, who will inherit it.”

Makerspace
Photo courtesy of CTL

Riverside Coworking is located at 3001 S. Riverside Drive in Fort Worth, inside Center for Transforming Lives. For more information, please visit https://riversidecoworking.org/.

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Center for Transforming Lives’ new Riverside Campus answers this community need by providing a comprehensive “one-stop shop” for these families, offering hope, healing and a pathway out of poverty. The new campus, located at 3001 S. Riverside Drive in southeast Fort Worth, officially launched with a Grand Opening Celebration at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, May 2.

As one of the community’s largest family safety nets, Center for Transforming Lives meets the needs of 3,000 women and children annually, through a comprehensive, two-generation and trauma- informed model. Thanks to housing support, early childhood education, economic mobility services and counseling services that work across generations, parents and children establish financial security and well-being as a family.

Ribbon Cutting ceremony for the new Center for Transforming Lives in Fort Worth.

“Our services are designed to remove any barriers to success for women with young children experiencing poverty or homelessness,” said CEO Carol Klocek.

Each family that Center for Transforming Lives successfully transitions from homelessness to self-sufficiency saves the community approximately $20,000 per year. Last year the agency moved 205 families out of shelters and off the streets and 81% remained stably housed. Savings are estimated at $4.1 million.

But the agency was hampered by lack of space in its former downtown building, located at 512 W. 4th Street. The City of Fort Worth has purchased the historic property for a downtown Fort Worth Public Library, and Center for Transforming Lives moved out in early April.

Moving to the new campus will significantly expand capacity to provide critical services: a 30 percent increase in families served is projected during the first year. The new location – next to a bus stop and four-line bus transfer station – will also improve community access in a historically underserved area in southeast Fort Worth, where the poverty rate for single mothers with children under age 6 is 71%.

Ribbon Cutting ceremony for the new Center for Transforming Lives in Fort Worth.

Participants will have expanded access to high quality early childhood education, therapy for both mothers and children, housing supports and an entire hub of economic opportunity services, including a makerspace, commercial kitchen and business incubators that support mothers seeking primary or secondary sources of family income.

Lack of childcare is one of the most common barriers women face when trying to escape poverty and homelessness. Each child receiving subsidized full-day childcare allows the parent to participate in the local workforce. The Riverside Campus will expand care from 72 slots to 106, providing an additional 10% per child per year return on investment.

Within the Riverside Campus, the Economic Mobility Center will offer small business education, incubation and acceleration services with free drop-in childcare. An estimated 100 small businesses will be created or expanded each year through Center for Transforming Lives small business programming.

Because the agency serves mothers and children with high rates of trauma, the priority is on creating a welcoming environment that creates a sense of safety and belonging. Designed by nationally renowned Bennett Partners, the unique architecture incorporates healing principles inside and out and has already received several awards.

The interior features peaceful colors, natural light, integration of nature and noise control, all of which are shown to lessen anxiety and depression and support a process of repair and recovery toward well-being.

Situated on approximately 14 acres of land, the new campus will be landscaped into an urban park setting, in collaboration with Studio Outside. The landscape design will allow mothers and children to enjoy the outdoors and reap mental and physical health benefits. A large playground and outdoor learning area will allow teachers in the flagship Early Childhood Education Center to deliver lessons outdoors, encouraging children to connect with nature, utilize all five senses and improve physical fitness.

The new campus was transformed from an 1950s era, all-concrete building that has sat vacant since the mid-90s. Poised for growth, the surrounding community is also undergoing revitalization. The opening of the new campus will provide a further catalyst for economic improvement in the area. Center for Transforming Lives is moving 119 permanent full-time jobs to southeast Fort Worth and plans to add 52 positions in the first year. Approximately 67 construction jobs were created, 100 percent of which are living wage.

Ribbon Cutting ceremony for the new Center for Transforming Lives in Fort Worth.

“The community response and interest in this project has been overwhelming,” Klocek said. “Our board members, our steering committee and our supporters have helped to turn our vision into reality. Thanks to their support, we are creating a community to support success and financial self-sufficiency for thousands of mothers and their families.”

The new campus allows Center for Transforming Lives to continue expanding its critical work disrupting the cycle of poverty for mothers and children in Tarrant County – and ensuring the health and vibrancy of our community for generations to come.

The post Center for Transforming Lives Relocates to New Campus first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Center for Transforming Lives’ new Riverside Campus answers this community need by providing a comprehensive “one-stop shop” for these families, offering hope, healing and a pathway out of poverty. Currently undergoing renovation, the new campus located at 3001 S. Riverside Drive in southeast Fort Worth, is projected to open in late 2024.

As one of the community’s largest family safety nets, Center for Transforming Lives meets the needs of 3,000 women and children annually, through a comprehensive, two-generation and trauma- informed model. Thanks to housing support, early childhood education, economic mobility services and counseling services that work across generations, parents and children establish financial security and well-being as a family.

“Our services are designed to remove any barriers to success for women with young children experiencing poverty or homelessness,” said CEO Carol Klocek.

Each family that Center for Transforming Lives successfully transitions from homelessness to self-sufficiency saves the community approximately $20,000 per year. Last year the agency moved 231 families out of shelters and off the streets and one year later, 98% remained stably housed. Savings are estimated at $4.6 million.

But the agency has been hampered by lack of space in its current downtown building, located at 512 4^th Street. On August 13, the Fort Worth City Council will vote on purchasing the property for a downtown Fort Worth Public Library.

Moving to the new campus will significantly expand capacity to provide critical services: a 30 percent increase in families served is projected during the first year. The new location – next to a bus stop and four-line bus transfer station – will also improve community access in a historically underserved area in southeast Fort Worth, where the poverty rate for single mothers with children under age 6 is 71%.

Participants will have expanded access to high quality early childhood education, therapy for both mothers and children, housing supports and an entire hub of economic opportunity services, including a makerspace, commercial kitchen and business incubators that support mothers seeking primary or secondary sources of family income.

Lack of childcare is one of the most common barriers women face when trying to escape poverty and homelessness. Each child receiving subsidized full-day childcare allows the parent to participate in the local workforce. The Riverside Campus will expand care from 72 slots to 106, providing an additional 10% per child per year return on investment.

Within the Riverside Campus, the Economic Mobility Center will offer small business education, incubation and acceleration services with free drop-in childcare. An estimated 100 small businesses will be created or expanded each year through Center for Transforming Lives small business programming.

Because the agency serves mothers and children with high rates of trauma, the priority is on creating a welcoming environment that creates a sense of safety and belonging. Designed by nationally renowned Bennett Partners, the unique architecture incorporates healing principles inside and out, and has already received several awards.

The interior features peaceful colors, natural light, integration of nature and noise control, all of which are shown to lessen anxiety and depression and support a process of repair and recovery toward well-being.

Situated on approximately 14 acres of land, the new campus will be landscaped into an urban park setting, in collaboration with Studio Outside. The landscape design will allow mothers and children to enjoy the outdoors and reap mental and physical health benefits. A large playground and outdoor learning area will allow teachers in the flagship Early Childhood Education Center to deliver lessons outdoors, encouraging children to connect with nature, utilize all five senses and improve physical fitness.

Led by the team at Linbeck, construction is progressing rapidly on the 1950s era, all-concrete building and adjacent land that has sat vacant since the mid-90s. Poised for growth, the surrounding community is also undergoing revitalization. The opening of the new campus will provide a further catalyst for economic improvement in the area. Center for Transforming Lives is moving 119 permanent full-time jobs to southeast Fort Worth and plans to add 52 positions in the first year. Approximately 67 construction jobs were created, 100 percent of which are living wage.

“The community response and interest in this project has been overwhelming,” Klocek said. “Our board members, our steering committee and our supporters have helped to turn our vision into reality. Thanks to their support, we are creating a community to support success and financial self-sufficiency for thousands of mothers and their families.”

The new campus is expected to open by the end of the year, allowing Center for Transforming Lives to continue expanding its critical work disrupting the cycle of poverty for mothers and children in Tarrant County – and ensuring the health and vibrancy of our community for generations to come.

For more information about Center for Transforming Lives and its Riverside Campus, please visit www.transforminglives.org/Riverside-Campus. To schedule an interview or a hard hat tour of the Riverside Campus, please contact Trish Rodriguez at trodriguez@transforminglives.org or 817-996-7330.

The post Center for Transforming Lives Relocating to New Campus first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Center for Transforming Lives (Rendering courtesy Bennett Partners)

The award comes on the heels of the city of Fort Worth’s selection of Bennett Partners and Atlanta’s TVS to deliver design and construction administration services for the first phase of the long-awaited expansion of the Fort Worth Convention Center.

The CTL project began as a pro-bono study by Bennett Partners to assist the organizaton in assessing the feasibility of adaptively reusing a 1960s-era department store for new facilities, the firm said in a news release. The company was later selected to go ahead with the work.

CTL is a Fort Worth outreach organization assisting underserved communities by providing a wide range of services for at-risk women and children, including crisis support, child care, Head Start services, financial education, housing services, family counseling and job training.

“We are certainly gratified for this recognition, but we are even more pleased to be able to help CTL in the important work they are doing for those in our community who are in need,” said Michael Bennett, principal and CEO of Bennett Partners.

Originally a two-level Montgomery Ward store, the all-concrete CTL structure at the corner of East Rosedale and South Riverside will undergo significant upgrades under Bennett Partners’ redesign plan. The work will include the addition of a landscaped entry courtyard that will introduce natural light into the building, a landscaped parking lot incorporating a park-like connection from the nearby bus stop to the building entry, and the creation of outdoor shaded play areas. Freestanding “houses” within the volume of the building will provide classroom space for children enrolled in Head Start. Much of the 13-acre site will be converted into green space for neighborhood activities and events.

Center for Transforming Lives (Rendering courtesy Bennett Partners)

The project is in the schematic design phase and construction is expected to begin next summer.

The Texas Society of Architects award is the latest in a string of recent honors bestowed on Bennett Partners for its creative approach to designing and improving working and living spaces.

The CTL project also garnered Bennett Partners a 2021 Studio Award from the Fort Worth Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and the firm has received numerous other accolades for its design work, including a 2021 Texas Society of Architects Design Award and the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art’s John Staub Award for the restoration and adaptive reuse of the Fort Worth Stockyards Historic Horse and Mule Barns; the AIA Fort Worth Chapter’s Merit Award for the optimization of Jetta Operating Company’s offices; the North Central Texas Council of Governments’ CLIDE Award for Mayor Vera Calvin Plaza in Burleson’s Old Town; the AIA Fort Worth Chapter’s Merit Award for the new Overton Park Elementary School in southwest Fort Worth; and AIA Fort Worth’s Merit Award for the Tarrant County College District’s new administrative offices.

This article originally appeared in the Fort Worth Business Press and is shared with permission. 

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Photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming LIves

With the new Head Start grant, CTL will provide full-day early childhood education and care to 342 more preschool children each year — expanding their pre-existing Early Head Start program by 56 and doubling the number of children CTL currently serves to 772.

To accommodate the dramatic increase in children served, CTL will work in partnership with several Tarrant County school districts and host preschool programs at select local elementary schools.

With disparities between low and high-income children starting as early as 9-months of age, high-quality early learning programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers are key factors in closing the opportunity gap and making sure all children have the best odds at success.

Photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

“Becoming a Head Start grantee ensures that more children who are homeless and living in poverty in our community will get the comprehensive services they need,” said Carol Klocek, CEO. “We are committed to these children from birth through elementary school, preparing them for success in school and in life, while working alongside their parents.”

CTL (formerly the YWCA Fort Worth) has provided low-to-no cost childcare to working mothers since the 1930s, and in the last decade has expanded and improved childcare to include comprehensive early childhood education. While the children are in CTL’s care, the agency’s programming ensures parents have access to safe housing, career-readiness training, transportation and financial coaching to improve the family’s economic well-being. This comprehensive, dual-generation approach disrupts generational poverty.

The Head Start program will begin serving children in late summer 2020. To set up an interview or press questions, please contact acambora@transforminglives.org.    For additional information on Head Start or Early Head Start, please contact ksaffold@transforminglives.org or earlylearning@transforminglives.org.

DETAILS:

• Office of Head Start awards CTL $22 mil. over four years
• Grant will expand CTL’s current services for 6-week to 3-year-olds to include 4 and 5-year-olds, launching Head Start program throughout Tarrant County
• The expansion will double the number served, totalling 772 low-income and homeless children
• Grant will also increase current ‘Early Head Start’ programming (6-weeks to 3-years) by 56 children
• CTL will work with Tarrant County School Districts to integrate the program and provide access to their students
• Head Start will begin serving children late summer 2020

Photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

Since 2019, Carol Klocek has been the CEO for Center for Transforming Lives, which works alongside women and their children to disrupt the cycle of poverty by providing comprehensive homeless services, early childhood education and economic mobility services. These comprehensive services include traditional childcare and Early Head Star, family housing and trauma intervention services for women and children experiencing homelessness. The Center also offers one-on-one financial coaching and asset building, as well as other economic mobility interventions.

Klocek holds a master’s degree in social work from University of Texas at Arlington and a master’s in business from Texas Christian University. She serves as a board member for DFWI, UNT Health Science Center’s Academic Community Partnerships, and has served on boards that address homelessness, mental health, and maternal and child health.

The post Center for Transforming Lives Receives Head Start National Grant first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Brenda has a strong professional background in the non-profit sector. She started her career at Lena Pope Home, and has also served as the Development Director for Mental Health America of Greater Tarrant County where she was responsible for the fundraising initiatives and overall operations of the organization. Fort the last two years, Rios served as JPS Foundation’s Director of Development.

Serving the community has been a priority and a lifelong commitment for Rios, who has worked in the non-profit sector for 18 years and has spent almost 12 of those years in fundraising. Rios is a Certified Fund Raising Professional, Vice President of Community Relations for the Association of Fundraising Professionals Board of Directors, a member of Junior League of Fort Worth and she serves on several committees that raise funds for non-profits in our community.

The Center for Transforming Lives moves women, children, and families from poverty to independence through safe housing, early childhood development and financial stability. For 110 years, the organization has served low-income women and children in Tarrant County. It was founded in 1907 as a boarding house for poor women, expanded to include child care for working mothers in the 1930s, and in 2015 changed its name from the YWCA Fort Worth & Tarrant County to the Center for Transforming Lives to more clearly articulate its mission.

For more information, please visit www.transforminglives.org.

The post The Center for Transforming Lives Announces a New CDO first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

In 2015, the group officially changed their name to The Center for Transforming Lives to better dedicate all their focus on folks living in our community. All the money they raise stays here and goes to several programs they have in place to assist low-income and homeless families.

For low-income and homeless families, child care can make or break their ability to earn a living. Without a stable environment, these children are at risk during the most crucial phases of brain development. In the three care centers that the Center runs, they place a premium on continued educational development and make sure children have breakfast and snacks to fuel their learning. They offer full-day, wrap-around care for mainstream kids, as well as low-income and homeless kids. While low-income families pay on a sliding scale based on their ability, children without a residence attend free of charge. The diversity of backgrounds is crucial to the beneficial environment they provide.

Lyndsay Hoover, The Center’s interim development director explains, “We want these kids in school, especially the homeless kids who would either be on the street or in a shelter. We want them learning with us.” It costs the Center approximately five thousand dollars for each homeless child to attend the program for free each year. For the past fifteen years, a major source of income for their good works has been their Resale Shop on Camp Bowie. In addition to the store, The Center for Transforming Lives runs and maintains an event space, Historic 512, whose proceeds benefit the programs in place for women and children.

photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

The Resale Shop manager Nola Davis runs her domain with care, where she works tirelessly to process donations and get them out on the floor to sell – always accepting assistance from new volunteers. As the weather turns and we endeavor the annual tradition of opening closets and cleaning out the old to make way for the new, consider bringing your gently-used treasures to the drop off, where you just need to pull up out back and they will do the work. Even if you are unable to make it to the store they will gladly come pick up your items, which can be processed for tax deductions. Sometimes selling your prized possessions online can be more hassle than it is worth, you can always reach out to the Center for Transforming Lives.

photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

The downtown homeless center has twenty beds available for women and children, capable of assisting clients in need of emergency, transitional or long-term care. Families are paired with advocates, who offer guidance with tuition assistance and navigating the various certification systems and accessing available resources for grants and other aid to get more training and advance their careers. Just as the YWCA did over a hundred years ago, The Center for Transforming Lives is committed to moving Moms out of poverty by providing education, support and employment. Glad to invest in someone’s improved future, private donors often pitch in to help them pay for an education with benefits across the community.

photo courtesy of the Center for Transforming Lives

The third element of the project includes financial empowerment classes, which aim to strengthen financial skills, foster savings, and help clients find helpful tools for debt reduction, money management, budget, and refinancing. All are carried out with an emphasis on breaking the cycles of poverty. “When a woman leaves us, we want her to stay out of poverty and remain stable.” Serving approximately 3000 clients, average income increases of clients working with CTL were measured at approximately $10,000 over the course of a calendar year. Every family who successfully gets off the streets represents not only a boon for taxpayers but enriches the tapestry of any city. Fewer people in crisis and less suffering across the board should be a central task of all society.

Hoover explains the relationship between the various sides of CTL, “Kids grow so quickly that they often only wear things a few times; we can use those items. When things come in, we might ask, ‘What do we need for a homeless woman immediately? Let’s service her first.’ Or Resale will get things, and we’ll say this will be perfect for those little babies we take care of downtown. And we are always seeking gently-used towels and hand towels for our homeless clients. There’s a little bit of give and take.”

Nothing is wasted as Nola and her staff at the Resale Shop make the best possible use of everything that comes in to the store. Boutique items with unique pieces and designer brands are a favorite with new stock flowing in weekly. Houseware, furniture, glassware and books; you never know what you might find looking back at their shelves, like the silver tea pot Nola shows off from Leonard’s Department store with the tag still on it.

Put your cast-offs to good use by donating your spring cleaning to help move women and children out of homelessness and poverty. The Resale Shop is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm to take your donations. Donated clothes equal transformed lives.

An Austin native, Lyle Brooks relocated to Fort Worth in order to immerse himself in the burgeoning music scene and the city’s rich cultural history, which has allowed him to cover everything from Free Jazz to folk singers. He’s collaborated as a ghostwriter on projects focusing on Health Optimization, Roman Lawyers, and an assortment of intriguing subjects requiring his research.

The post Transforming Lives in Tarrant County: The Resale Shop first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Remember how exciting it was to get new school supplies? They were so full of promise, so full of potential. The new school year was waiting to be conquered! But what if you couldn’t afford new school supplies?

This month, Tanglewood Moms Gives Back is helping the Center for Transforming Lives. The Center wants to “break the cycle of poverty for women and children through safe housing, early childhood development and financial stability.” One of the most important ways of breaking the cycle of poverty is education. To this end, the Center has three early childhood education centers where children are exposed to a literacy-rich, safe, and secure learning environment that prepares them for entering kindergarten. This is where Tanglewood Moms Gives Back comes in.

The Center needs school supplies. In 2015, the CTL served 75% of preschool-age children in emergency shelters or transitional living at no cost to their parents. But they need supplies. When you’re out shopping for school supplies on Tax Free Weekend (August 11 – 13), why not throw a couple of extra things in your cart!

• Tissues
• Children’s underwear (ages 3 to 4)
• Ziploc plastic bags, various sizes
• Sanitizing wipes (Lysol or Clorox)
• Glue sticks
• Construction paper
• Miscellaneous art supplies (crayons, markers, pipe cleaners, stickers, etc.)

Gus Bates Insurance and Investments has graciously offered to be the drop-off location this month. They are located at 3221 Collinsworth Street, Fort Worth, TX, 76107. At the end of the month, we will gather up the supplies to take to the Center for Transforming Live. We truly appreciate your generosity. Tanglewood Moms Gives Back is, because of you, making a difference in Fort Worth!

TanglewoodMoms.com wants to thank Heather Minhinnette for getting Tanglewood Moms Gives Back up and running. Heather and her family have moved, and we will miss her! We want to keep Tanglewood Moms Gives Back going, but we need some help! If you or someone you know would like to join the TWM team as our charitable donations coordinator, please email twmposts@gmail.com for more information.

The post Tanglewood Moms Gives Back: Center for Transforming Lives first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.