Last fall, the Junior League of Omaha voted to add a new project to its roster of community impact endeavors. With that vote, a partnership with Restored Hope was formed. Restored Hope is a community nonprofit that acts as a sanctuary for single mothers and their children who are in abusive environments.

As a League, our organization will provide mentorship, training and other opportunities that support Restored Hope’s mission to provide advancement and introduce Restored Hope’s clients back into a healthy community. The League hopes to become a reliable resource for the Restored Hope community and offer assistance that Restored Hope’s clients can use to break the cycle of poverty that single mothers who are in abusive environments often encounter.  The program committee is currently working on curriculum that incorporates training, mentorship and meaningful involvement.

The Restored Hope Project Committee decided to change its name to R.I.S.E. (Resilience, Independence, Strength, Empowerment) so that the project could have its own identity outside of the Restored Hope organization. In doing so, this will also allow The Junior League to partner with more or different nonprofits in the future.

The concept of “RISE” came from the goal to help women understand the “secret rules” of the middle class, so they can escape (rise from) generational poverty.

The RISE Committee will continue to build the program and strengthen the partnership with Restored Hope this League year and will kick off the official program in 2018.