A NEW DAY, A NEW DAWN FOR FAMILIES
The Journey Home Starts Here
Jocelyn’s Family Journey
Jocelyn is just six years old. She’s bright, creative, and full of curiosity. The kind of child who lights up when someone pays her just a little attention.
When she arrived at Dawning Family Services with her mother and baby brother, Jocelyn was quiet at first, holding tightly to her mom’s hand. But her face lit up when she was handed a small drawstring backpack filled with snacks, school supplies, and a few toys. It was the first time she’d ever had a backpack of her own.
She pulled out a small lego set and smiled proudly. “I can build it myself,” she said. Her mom nodded with tired eyes, and shared how creative Jocelyn is. Jocelyn wants to help wash the dishes and dreams of helping her mom cook one day.
But Jocelyn doesn’t have a kitchen to help in. She doesn’t have a table to eat at. She doesn’t even have a bed to sleep in.
That night and many nights before and after Jocelyn, her baby brother, and their mother slept in their car, parked in a store parking lot under flickering lights.
There’s no privacy. No safety. No sense of peace.
Despite all the compassion and care in our community, there simply aren't enough services to meet the growing need. Every month, Dawning Family Services receives an average of 600 requests for help from families with children. Jocelyn’s family is one of hundreds in Tampa Bay facing the trauma of homelessness without a safe place to go.
And while we may see a smiling and helpful little girl with lego toys in her hands, what we don’t see is what it’s costing her to survive.
Children experiencing homelessness face serious risks to their health, development, and emotional wellbeing. The longer a family goes without stable housing, the harder it becomes to regain their footing. Without intervention, families spiral deeper into crisis and children like Jocelyn miss out on the safety, structure, and support they need to thrive.
This is the heartbreaking reality for far too many families in our community. But with your help, we can change it.
Let’s make sure Jocelyn has more than a backpack. Let’s give her a pathway to a safe home.
Although Dawning Family Services couldn’t immediately offer shelter to Jocelyn’s family, we didn’t walk away. Through our Rapid Rehousing Program, we stayed by their side—providing essentials like food, diapers, documentation support, and referrals. When housing finally became available, we helped them move in and offered ongoing support through rental and utility assistance so they could stay housed while they worked toward independence.
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Mission
Mission Statement: We embrace diverse families with children touched by housing instability or homelessness and support their transition to a safe and stable home.
Vision
We envision a community without homelessness where all families can live and thrive.
History
For over 40 years, Dawning Family Services has been dedicated to transforming lives and providing a path to stability for families in crisis. Our mission is to embrace diverse families withchildren touched by housing instability or homelessness and support their transition to a safe andstable home. This mission continues to be the foundation of everything we do.
Dawning Family Services, formerly Alpha House of Tampa, has been serving Tampa and Hillsborough County since 1981. Until 2018 we offered emergency bridge housing and supportive services to only pregnant women and single mothers with children under five the “maternity home” model. In 2018, our Board of Directors approved a new mission and expanded services to reflect the agency’s desire to address the growing need of serving more families.
Along with the expansion of our mission, came a rebranding from Alpha House of Tampa to Dawning Family Services. We proudly serve all modern families with minor children including single mothers, single fathers, two parent families, multi-generational households, and LGBTQ+ parents.
Four Pillars of Service
Prevention Program
The Prevention Program is vital in preventing homelessness before it begins. By interveningearly, we help families facing housing instability avoid the trauma of homelessness. We connectthem to safe and affordable housing options, providing an alternative to shelters and uninhabitable spaces
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Emergency Bridge Housing Program
This program provides short-term shelter for families living in places unfit for habitation. Ourshelter serves as a critical first point of contact for families in crisis. Families in our emergencyshelter receive comprehensive services, including case management, housing search, rent andutility assistance, and post-shelter support to ensure long-term stability once they arepermanently housed.
Rapid Rehousing Program
apid Rehousing Program offers essential rental and utility assistance to families in our programs or those living in unsafe, uninhabitable conditions (e.g., cars, abandoned buildings). This program focuses on helping families transition quickly to permanent housing, stabilize in their new homes, and connect with community services and resources to ensure lasting success.
Work for Success Program
k for Success empowers adults to find gainful employment. Through one-on-one coaching, we assist with resume preparation, interview skills, and job searches. We also help participantsovercome barriers such as childcare, limited education or work experience, and criminal records,ensuring they are equipped to build sustainable, living-wage careers.
The Challenge
Safe housing is more than a roof it’s the foundation for a healthy, stable life. Without it, families cannot access the most basic human needs. Mental health declines. Employment becomes nearly impossible. Access to education and healthcare falls apart. Families living without shelter are also more vulnerable to violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and exploitation. The lack of affordable housing isn’t just a housing issue — it’s a public health crisis, a workforce issue, and a compounding crisis for children.
The toll on children is devastating. Homelessness robs children of safety, stability, and the simple routines that support healthy development. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, children without housing are more likely to suffer from emotional and behavioral issues, chronic health conditions, and poor academic performance. Many face the trauma of being separated from their parents or becoming entangled in the juvenile justice system. Without intervention, the cycle continues these children are far more likely to experience homelessness as adults. When a child grows up without a home, it doesn’t just affect their future it affects all of ours.
In Hillsborough County, the affordable housing crisis continues to worsen. The 2025 Regional Competitiveness Report shows that housing affordability has significantly declined, with 57% of household income now spent on housing and transportation alone. According to the United Way’s 2025 United for ALICE Study, 46% of households in Hillsborough County fall below the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) threshold and federal poverty level combined. The combination of inadequate income and housing costs is the leading cause of family homelessness. The Household Survival Budget for a family of four with two adults and two children in child care requires an annual income of $96,744. This represents the minimum income needed to live and work in Hillsborough’s economy.
According to the 2025 Annual Point-In-Time County, 1,796 neighbors were homeless on any given night in Hillsborough County. More than 800 neighbors (846) were unsheltered while 950 were sheltered in the community.
Despite our efforts, the demand for these services continues to grow, and additional resources are essential to meet the needs of our community effectively. Requests from families have more than doubled. Every month, Dawning Family Services receives an average of 600 requests for help from families with children.
The Solution
With a stable home, families can focus on critical needs like mental health, employment, healthcare, and educational support for children. This stability improves physicaland mental health outcomes, reduces emergency service needs, and helps parents better care fortheir children. Children thrive in stable environments, with improved academic performance,better mental health, and a reduced risk of future homelessness or involvement in the juvenile justice system.
Our programs are designed to be low-barrier and accessible, ensuring that families aren’t turnedaway due to challenges such as substance misuse, mental health diagnoses, involvement with child protective services, or criminal history. We recognize that every family’s circumstances are unique, and we offer flexible, individualized support without imposing mandatory participationrequirements.
Dawning Family Services is embarking on a capitalcampaign to develop the first purpose-built solution in Hillsborough County, the Family Solutions Center, a transformative facility designed to address both the immediate and long-term needs of families in crisis. This innovative center will provide essential services such as hot meals, showers, and laundry facilities. Additionally, it will act as a community hub where families can access crucial resources, including mental health services, employment support, and housing assistance all in one centralized location. The center will also feature a large community area where families can use computers, charge cell phones, and conduct daily business during operating hours.
The Family Solutions Center will allow Dawning Family Services to serve 3-4 times more families a year than we are currently assisting.
Anticipated Annual Impact Snapshot
1,250 Unique families served 13,980
Hot meals provided (1 per day)
2,800 Family showers offered 5,825
Loads of laundry completed 875
New families enrolled in case management services
By breaking the cycle of homelessness and improving economic outcomes, DFS helps families build a secure future.
Our programs ultimately enable families to achieve independence andovercome the barriers that once limited their opportunities, laying the groundwork for enduringsuccess.
Why Now?
The need has never been greater and the cost of inaction has never been higher.
Hillsborough County is facing an urgent housing crisis. Rents have skyrocketed. Wages have not kept up. More than 1,000 individuals are sleeping unsheltered on any given night, and hundreds of families are without a place to call home – just like Jocelyn’s. Many are experiencing homelessness for the first time people who never imagined they’d fall into crisis.
Our shelter is consistently full. Our prevention program is stretched to capacity. We’re seeing more families with infants, more single dads, and more people who simply don’t know where to turn. Without immediate investment in facilities that can offer both emergency services and long-term support, families will continue to fall through the cracks risking not just their housing, but their health, their stability, and their future. Now is our moment to rise to meet the need.
The Family Solutions Center is not just a response it’s a bold and compassionate solution for Hillsborough County. But it can only happen with your support.
PHASE II
Building & Project Overview
The Family Solutions Center will be a countywide asset and transformative facility designed to meet the comprehensive needs of families experiencing homelessness. This multi-purpose center will incorporate best practice models and provide low-barrier, trauma-informed support that allows families to stabilize, heal, and move forward all under one roof.
The facility will house Dawning Family Services’ core programs, Prevention, Emergency Bridge Housing, Rapid Rehousing, and Employment Support, while also offering new and expanded services that address daily needs and long-term planning. It will be a lifeline for families who are not enrolled in services and receiving assistance elsewhere.
This capital project will expand our reach, increase efficiency, reduce service fragmentation, and eliminate barriers that keep families stuck in crisis. It will allow us to serve more families, more effectively, with more dignity than ever before.
TheFamily Solutions Center will be a place where the journey home can truly begin.
Families like Jocelyn’s will no longer be forced to navigate a crisis in their car or search for scattered resources.
Instead, they will have access to the first solution in Hillsborough County designed exclusively for families including:
A drop-in center with hot meals, private showers, laundry facilities, computer access, charging stations, and a safe place to rest.
A centralized hub for case management, employment services, mental health support, and housing assistance.
A community-benefit rental space, where families can attend workshops, activities, and rebuild their lives with dignity and support.
PHASE I
Project Vision
Our vision is bold: a thriving Tampa Bay community where no family sleeps in their car, no child misses school because of housing instability, and no parent chooses between paying rent and feeding their child.
The Family Solutions Center will become the heart of that vision —a model of compassionate care, integrated services, and real solutions. It will be a place where the journey home doesn’t just begin—it continues until stability is achieved.
Elements of Design
This two-story 9,000 sq ft building will include:
2 private family changing rooms with showers
6 private offices for family meetings
5 free washers and dryers for families
Kitchen facilities
Multi-purpose community room and family, children event space with 100 person capacity
Drop-in computer stations
Flexible meeting areas
Kids Zone engagement area
Flexible co-working staff offices
Phase II
Mixed use housing unit coming soon!
Why Dawning Family Services?
Dawning Family Services has been a trusted, community-rooted organization for over 40 years. Formerly Alpha House of Tampa, we have grown from serving pregnant women and single mothers to meeting the evolving needs of all modern families in crisis single parents, couples, multi-generational families, LGBTQ+ parents, and more.
What sets us apart in Hillsborough County, is our low-barrier, wraparound approach to family homelessness. We don’t wait for families to meet criteria—they’ve already met the most important one: they need help. Our services are trauma-informed, inclusive, and individualized. From prevention to emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, and employment coaching, we walk with families every step of their journey to stability.
Our team is deeply embedded in the Hillsborough County community. We collaborate with local providers, leverage national best practices, and continuously adapt to meet the growing need. When families are turned away elsewhere, Dawning Family Services is often their last and best hope for safety, dignity, and a chance to begin again.
The total project cost is estimated at $6.5 million, and we have secured a $2.5 million commitmentfrom an anonymous donor, providing a solid foundation for the campaign.
How you can help
Now is our moment to rise to meet the need. The Family Solutions Center is not just a response—it’s a bold and compassionate solution. But it can only happen with your support.
Dawning Family Services will build theFamily Solutions Center a place where the journey home can truly begin. Families like Jocelyn’s will no longer be forced to navigate a crisis in their car or search for scattered resources. Instead, they will have access to the first solution in Hillsborough County designed exclusively for families.
This new center will allow Dawning Family Services to help more families with more dignity than ever before. The Family Solutions Center will be a place of safety, healing and opportunity.
For Jocelyn, for her little brother, for their mother and for the many families still waiting in the dark your support can mean the difference between another night in a car and the first step toward home.
This is their moment. This is a new day and a new dawn for families.
And the journey home starts here with you.
