The grand opening of Nina’s Place was cause for celebration at the YWCA of Greater Flint on October 27. Festivities honoring the new transitional living center for young women aging out of foster care included a ribbon-cutting ceremony and news conference featuring Senator Debbie Stabenow, Congressman Dale Kildee, Paul D. Newman, YWCA CEO, and Tim Herman, Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce CEO. There was also tours of the new program facility immediately following the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Nina’s Place is the residential component of a new program, Partners in Transition, which provides housing and other supportive services to women, ages 18-20, who have recently aged out of the foster care system. Senator Carl Levin, Senator Debbie Stabenow, and Congressman Dale Kildee secured funding for the Partners in Transition program through the FY2010 Congressional appropriations bill.
“For over a century, the YWCA has provided services and shelter for women in Genesee County,” said U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow. “With the opening of Nina’s Place, young women who have nowhere else to turn will now have a place to stay and the support they need to begin this new time in their lives.”
“The YWCA of Greater Flint has been providing critical support services to young women in our area for decades,” said Congressman Dale E. Kildee. “YWCA’s great work continues today with the opening of Nina’s Place, which will help young women transition to life after foster care. Instead of sending these young women out into the world without any support, Nina’s Place will give them a safety net, a place to stay if they need it and the guidance to help them to make the right choices in their adult lives.”
“Congratulations to the YWCA of Greater Flint,” added Tim Herman, Regional Chamber. “Providing young women with a support system that allows them to go on to become independent, productive citizens, is just another positive step in a long list of the YWCA accomplishments.”
To complete the renovations of Nina’s Place, the YWCA partnered with several organizations in the community that “adopted” rooms, providing decorations and other furnishings that give each bedroom on the floor its own unique style. “This program is truly a community collaboration with fifteen different service organizations and local businesses coming together to create a lively, welcoming space for these new, young residents of downtown Flint,” said Paul D. Newman, YWCA CEO.
About the YWCA of Greater Flint
For more than 100 years, the YWCA of Greater Flint has provided comprehensive programs, outspoken leadership and professional expertise on the pressing issues of our times. Created by women for women, the YWCA has a proud and pioneering history. Its mission is to eliminate racism, empower women, and promote peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all.