News

The Berks Coalition to End Homelessness (BCEH), is seeking proposals from qualified Independent Public Accountants (IPA), for auditing services for the twelve-month period ending September 30th 2022, and subsequent twelve-month period, for all of its accounting books and records which include HAP, ERAP, ESG-CARES. The IPA must be a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and/or a …

Request for Proposals – Audit Read More »

We would like to give a huge THANK YOU to the Reading and Vicinity Ministerial Association for their generous donation! They provided BCEH with several Walmart gift cards to hand out to those in need – this gift will help many people obtain the supplies they need. Thank you RVMA Family for thinking of us …

Thank You Reading & Vicinity Ministerial Association Read More »

The staff at BCEH are pretty big fans of our puppies! From our dogs to yours – Happy International Dog Day

There is currently bonus funding available for this year’s FY22 CoC Program Competition to be used for new project applications or expansion of existing projects. One of Berks County’s CoC-funded organizations has informed the CoC that they are opting to reallocate their project and will not be submitting a renewal application. This has led to …

Additional Funding Available Read More »

Posted on the BCEH website are the final versions of the scoring tools. There have not been any changes made to the renewal project scoring tool, however we wanted to send this out to consolidate all of the information in one place for your reference. The new project tool will be used for any new …

Scoring and Ranking FY 2022 NOFO Read More »

Newly posted on the BCEH website is the new project request for proposals and the expansion project proposal form for the FY22 CoC Program Competition. (https://bceh.org/agency-support/funding/) Currently, there are two bonus funding opportunities available in the FY22 NOFO Competition: CoC Bonus: $191,343 DV Bonus: $382,686 If your organization is interested in applying for one of …

New and Expansion Projects RFP Read More »

The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Continuum of Care Competition has been posted on Grants.gov. Additional resources will be available on the Continuum of Care Program Competition page of HUD’s website.  The CoC Application, CoC Priority Listing, and Project Applications should be available in e-snaps within the next two …

FY 22 CoC Program NOFO Announced Read More »

FY2022 Notice of Intent (NOI) to Solicit “New” and “Expansion” Projects The Reading/Berks County CoC (PA-506) is issuing this Notice of Intent (NOI) to solicit new and expansion projects to be submitted for HUD CoC Program funds. The CoC anticipates that HUD will release the FY 2022 CoC Program Competition Notice of Funding Opportunity (CoC …

FY22 NOI Read More »

Sunday June 19th celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, the last enslaved people in Texas were informed of the emancipation proclamation that was signed six months prior. While Lincoln’s proclamation is often cited as the end of slavery, it did not truly end until Juneteenth when all those …

Juneteenth 2022 Read More »

Last year, BCEH created the Lived Experience Advisory Panel (LEAP): a leadership development body consisting of members with current or recent past experience of homelessness. The board serves as a platform for people who’ve experienced homelessness to provide meaningful input to improve Berks County’s homeless response system, and has become a vital voice in informing …

Join LEAP Read More »

We would like to wish all individuals in the LGBTQ+ community a Happy Pride Month! We support you always – everyone is welcome when they walk into BCEH!

The BCEH Team has been out and about in the community! This month, members of the team prepared and served a meal at the The LGBT Center of Greater Reading for their Warm Meal Wednesdays. If you’re in need of food assistance, check them out on the third Wednesday of every month for a sit-down …

BCEH in the Community Read More »

The Pennsylvania State Primary is on May 17th and the last day to register to vote in the primary is on May 2nd! To see who is on your ballot, check out: https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup To register to vote: https://www.usa.gov/register-to-vote People experiencing homelessness are eligible to vote in all 50 states! Large numbers of voters usually turn …

Register to Vote! Read More »

This past winter, BCEH operated a Code Blue program for families with children that needed a place to stay. We served 77 families for a total of 238 people. Thank you to the staff that worked diligently to keep people safe and warm, and worked to help them find their next step. We could not …

Code Blue 2021-2022 Read More »

March was Social Work Month! At BCEH, we have several fantastic social workers doing valuable work every day, along with some stellar interns. Thank you to the social workers of BCEH for your efforts in ending homelessness!

Last night, BCEH staff and Megan, our MSW intern from Alvernia, helped cook a meal at the The LGBT Center of Greater Reading. Every month, the LGBT Center has a warm dinner and hand out food around the city. We cooked a ton of pasta, chopped over 25 pounds of onions, and had a blast! …

LGBT Center Volunteering Read More »

HUD announced FY 2021 Continuum of Care (CoC) Competition Awards. Please see the below link from HUD for specific project-level funding information. All renewal projects maintained their funding amounts, and many received an increase. Overall, our CoC received over $300,000 more than we were originally allocated. HUD clearly recognizes the great work being done every …

FY21 CoC Program Awards Read More »

The third Women’s History Month highlight is Dolores Clara Fernandez Huerta, born on April 10, 1930, in Dawson, New Mexico. Huerta was influenced at an early age by her mother, Alicia Chavez who owned a restaurant and 70-room hotel. Chavez welcomed low-wage workers and farmworker families at affordable prices and often provided them with free …

Dolores Clara Fernandez Huerta Read More »

BCEH would like to give a big shout out to one of the residents in our permanent supportive housing program! This is Leon, he is a veteran with 6 children who could not find work because of a disability and ended up homeless. This however, did not keep him down for long. When he entered …

Client Highlight – Leon Read More »

The second Women’s History Month highlight is Barbara Jordan (1936-1996). Jordan was a lawyer, educator, politician, and leader in the Civil Rights Movement. She was the first African American woman elected to the Texas state senate and first African American Texan in Congress. Jordan was also the first LGBTQ+ woman in Congress. Jordan is known …

Barbara Jordan Read More »

The Berks Coalition to End Homelessness sent letters asking our elected officials Senator Pat Toomey, Senator Bob Casey and Representative Chrissy Houlahan to work with their colleagues to avoid a long-term continuing resolution, and instead ensure affordable housing, homelessness, and community development programs receive the highest level of funding possible in fiscal year 2022, including …

Call Your Representatives! Read More »

March is Women’s History Month! This month, we will be highlighting important women who advocated for people experiencing homelessness and those living in poverty. The first woman that we will be highlighting is Clara Barton (1821-1912). As a girl, Clara grew up caring for her ill brother. At the age of 18, she began teaching …

Clara Barton Read More »

The final Black History Month highlight is Lester Blackwell Granger (1896-1976). Lester Blackwell Granger was a social worker and civil rights and labor rights activist best known for leading the National Urban League (NUL) from 1941 to 1961. He was the first black person to serve as President of the National Conference of Social Welfare …

Lester Blackwell Granger Read More »

Membership in the Continuum of Care (Berks Coalition to End Homelessness) is open to any organization or individual that has an interest in the community-wide commitment to prevent and end homelessness in the City of Reading and Berks County. “Relevant organizations” include nonprofit homeless assistance providers, victim service providers, faith-based organizations, political subdivisions and other …

CoC Membership Invitation Read More »

The third Black History Month highlight is Thyra J. Edwards (1897 – 1953) Thyra J. Edwards was a world lecturer, journalist, labor organizer, women’s rights advocate, and civil rights activist. She was highly respected by her peers and throughout the community where she provided services. Edwards was often heralded as “one of the most outstanding …

Thyra Edwards Read More »

Our second Black History Month highlight is George Edmund Haynes (1880–1960). George Edmond Haynes was a lifelong civil rights advocate with a diverse educational background in social work. Haynes was the first African American to graduate from the New York School of Philanthropy (now the Columbia University School of Social Work). Earlier, while still a …

Dr. George Edmond Haynes Read More »

The BCIU Head Start program serves low income families with children ages 3, 4, and 5 years of age. The program offers FREE high-quality education to families that qualify for the program! As part of the program, families will also receive free social services from the Family Engagement Specialists, free health screenings from Certified Nurses, …

BCIU Head Start Read More »

Last week, members of the BCEH team took to the streets and our local drop-in centers and food distribution organizations to talk with individuals and families experiencing unsheltered homelessness. This effort was part of the Point-in-Time count that the Department of Housing and Urban Development requires every year. We would like to thank the organizations …

Point-in-Time Count 2022 Read More »

February is Black History Month! This month, we are going to highlight several important black Americans to honor the work that they have done in the effort to end homelessness and advocate for families with low-income. The first is Shirley Chisholm (1924 – 2005).Shirley Chisholm was the first African American woman in Congress and the …

Shirley Chisholm Read More »

The Pennsylvania Homeowner Assistance Fund is now accepting applications to provide eligible Pennsylvania homeowners with much-needed assistance to prevent and/or ease mortgage delinquencies, defaults, foreclosures, displacement and utility disconnection. The fund supports Pennsylvania homeowners whose household income is at or below 150% of the area median income that now must grapple with additional unforeseen financial …

PA Homeowner Assistance Read More »

Berks Connections/Pretrial Services (BCPS) is now operating the Reentry Resource Center (RERC) out of their office located at 19 N. 6th St., 4th floor in Reading! The RERC is a single point of contact for individuals with current or prior justice system involvement. Those seeking assistance from the RERC will undergo a brief assessment by …

BCPS Reentry Resource Center Read More »

Free at-home COVID-19 tests are now available! Visit https://www.covidtests.gov/ to order your at-home COVID-19 tests. Limit of 4 tests per mailing address.

The The LGBT Center of Greater Reading will be providing a warm meal every third Wednesday of the month from 5pm-7pm! Please see the attached flyers for more information.

LIHWAP may be able to assist you with overdue water and wastewater bills! Check out this image for more information.

Article Published in The Reading Eagle October 15 2019 Click to view the whole article as a pdf.

Article Published in The Reading Eagle October 15 2019 Click to view the whole article as a pdf.

Article Published in The Reading Eagle October 11, 2019 Click to view the whole article as a pdf.

Article Published in The Reading Eagle February 26 2019 Click to view the whole article as a pdf.

Read a pdf of the article that was published in The Reading Eagle February 25, 2019

Read a pdf of the article that was published in The Reading Eagle
February 24, 2019