Claris, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, came here to build a better life for her children. Instead, she lost her son tothe lifestyle of the streets. She put off her educational goals and neglected her health, working long hours on a factory floor. Then she had to leave her job for family reasons.

She was caught in the downward spiral of poverty, and it nearly destroyed her when she attempted suicide. Thankfully, she survived. She went directly from the hospital to ECS St. Barnabas Mission for homeless women and their children, a move she says saved her life. Now she is training to become a medical assistant while maintaining a safe home for her family.

“I thank God every day for you people at St. Barnabas,” says Claris. “I wouldn’t be alive today without you.”

Amanda raised three children in her home in Philadelphia’s Oak Lane section. She wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. After the passing of her husband and the onset of arthritis, however, it seemed impossible for her to keep living independently.

“They tell me I shouldn’t be here alone, but I love it here,” says Amanda. “I guess it’s because I’ve stayed here longer than I’ve stayed any other place.”

ECS Home Care stepped in. Twice a week, her home health aide, Hattie, shops for groceries, cleans the house, does the laundry and helps Amanda with personal care. Thanks to ECS, Amanda can remain at home, close to friends and family and surrounded by happy memories.

Like Amanda, over 80% of Philadelphia seniors report wanting to remain in their own homes as long as possible.

It takes a special kind of person to become a foster parent: Someone who wants to make a difference in the life of a child. Over the past 20 years, Deborah has cared for over a dozen of ECS's littlest clients, most of them medically needy. She even adopted four of them.

“If you look at the children in Philadelphia, they’re really hurting,” says Deborah. "I want to make sure that my children grow up with a sense of stability.”

In foster care, the ECS focus on keeping families together can mean both strengthening biological families and sustaining new families formed through long-term placements and adoptions. Deborah excels in both, engaging the birth parents of both her foster and adopted children.

“I’m only one person. I can only give them so much, but I can give them my love.”

If there is one notion that Edgar would like to ingrain in the minds of his children, it is the importance of a good education. Edgar married and started a family at 17, working hard to support his family without a high school diploma. After 20 years at the same job, he decided it was time to move his career forward and became an adult literacy student at ECS Urban Bridges.

As a result of nearly perfect attendance and hard work, Edgar’s improvement has been extraordinary. In one year, he increased three grade levels.

“My kids challenge me. They always ask me if I’ve done my homework,“ says Edgar. "I want to show them that you can get an education at any age.”

After he earns his GED, Edgar plans to become a Philadelphia police officer, protecting his community and better providing for his family.

When Marquel first arrived at the ECS Beacon Center at age 5, he could barely talk and the other children teased him as he muttered sounds. Before making any assumptions, the staff called a meeting with Marquel's mom to assess his situation. That's when they learned about Marquel's speech problem, a result of his being born with meningitis.

Beacon staff responded by getting Marquel more involved in interactive programs that could develop his social skills and refering his mom to places where she could get professional help and further testing to help Marquel achieve his academic goals.

Despite some limitations, Marquel is now better able to communicate with teachers and to socialize with other children at school and at the ECS Beacon Center. As a single parent, his mother says she's particularly thankful for Marquel's new-found self-esteem.