“After 32 years of having all my decisions made for me, life on the outside was a blur of daily choices I could barely comprehend. Thankfully, I was granted residence at the Fortune Academy (a.k.a. “the Castle”) shortly after my release. Life at the Castle is truly unique for many reasons, but what really strikes me is the open trust and concern shared by residents and staff. There is a “we are family” approach that results in uncommonly high standards of behavior and living for the 60-odd men and women living there.

My successful reentry can be directly attributed to the structured support I received from The Fortune Society. Everyone at Fortune – front-line staff to executives – played a personal role in guiding me through this difficult transition.” –Larry W., former client & current Community and Policymaker Liaison for The Fortune Society

The Fortune Society’s Housing Program empowers homeless, formerly incarcerated individuals and their families to build better futures through stable and affordable housing.

By providing low-threshold access to supportive emergency, phased-permanent and permanent housing, our Housing Program meets both the immediate and long-term needs of our clients.  Participating clients are able to take the first steps on their journeys towards becoming positive, self-sufficient members of society with the full support of Fortune’s comprehensive reentry service offering and culturally competent staff.

FORTUNE’S HOUSING PROGRAM INCLUDES:

The heart of Fortune’s housing program is our residential facilities in West Harlem: the Fortune Academy and Castle Gardens.

The Fortune Academy, which is fondly referred to as “the Castle” because of its appearance and scenic location overlooking the Hudson River, provides emergency and longer-term housing for 62 formerly incarcerated individuals at any one time.  “The Castle” creates an environment that encourages peer support.  Residents are able to share their experiences during participant-led groups that promote freedom of expression in a safe and confidential forum. This peer model approach continues to be instrumental to our clients’ ability to attain and maintain positive, self-sufficient, and substance- and crime- free lives. From it’s inception, the Academy has assisted over 800 residents with a wide array of concerns that include obtaining and maintaining stable housing, employment, substance abuse treatment, and recovery and family reunification.

Castle Gardens – our new mixed-use, green, supportive and affordable residential community and service center – provides affordable housing and essential services at the same site, creating long-term housing solutions for homeless people with histories of incarceration and their families, as well as low-income individuals and families from West Harlem and the greater New York area.

Please click here to download the brochure for more information about our residential housing community in West Harlem.

Fortune’s Scattered Site Housing Programs are designed to provide supportive services that help clients to locate phased-permanent and permanent housing in the community, ensuring they are able to achieve independence. In particular, Scattered Site services are for singles with HIV and HASA eligibility or those with substance abuse histories.  Supportive services provided by Fortune Society’s Scattered Site program include: referrals, assistance obtaining entitlements, providing apartment start-up kits for permanent housing, rental subsidies for eligible clients, linkage to medical care, vocational/educational services, life skills training, and substance abuse counseling. Following are descriptions of our two scattered site housing programs, along with general eligibility requirements and services provided:

The Coming Home Project: The Coming Home Project provides emergency, transitional and permanent housing within the New York City area to homeless, formerly incarcerated individuals living with HIV/AIDS. Individuals who are within six months of release and wish to participate in our housing programs will receive discharge planning services to ensure a smooth transition from incarceration back to their community.

New York/ New York III: The NYNYIII program provides scattered-site housing to formerly incarcerated men and women with substance abuse disorders in need of supportive housing. Research shows that having a place of one’s own helps people to remain in recovery.  This program is designed for individuals who are engaged in or have completed a substance abuse treatment program within the past year, and who are currently homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

Please click here to download the brochure for more information about our Scattered Site Housing program.