‘The Best Kept Secret in Rochester’
In Monroe County, per 10,000 people of the general population, 11 were homeless in 2020. Of these, seven were individuals and the rest were families. To combat this issue, TemPro was formed to aid in housing homeless families without separating them the way many other homeless shelters do. In addition to temporary shelter, this organization also provides food, transportation, and all kinds of other necessities for homeless families. As TemPro’s Operations Manager puts it, it’s the best kept secret in Rochester. The relationship between TemPro and these families is strengthened by the case manager, Lauren Weiner. When Weiner visits, she takes extra time interacting with them and the children to promote feelings of safety and security. In February 2022, TemPro took in a family of four and placed them in one of their 11 houses. The Laurent family had been living in a number of motels for seven months after having been kicked out of a relative's house, after fleeing a domestic violence situation before that. Iesha and her three children are navigating as they search for permanent housing with the help of TemPro.
The TemPro Case Manager, Lauren Weiner, organizes and creates a box of nonperishable food items for a client in Rochester, N.Y. on Feb. 8, 2022.
Lauren and her student intern, Elise, on their way to make routine visits with clients in Rochester, N.Y. on Feb. 8, 2022.
A child of one of TemPro’s families shows Elise how she learned to spell her name at school on Feb. 8, 2022 in Rochester, N.Y.
Elise plays with the children of a TemPro family on a routine visit on Feb. 8, 2022.
A child plays peek-a-boo with Lauren as she visits with the family on Feb. 8, 2022.
A young boy interacts with the information Lauren leaves for the family in Rochester, N.Y. on Feb. 8, 2022.
Elise, Lauren’s intern, takes the Laurent family’s bags as they move out of the motel they had been living in in Rochester, N.Y. on Feb. 12, 2022.
Lauren unlocks the largest TemPro house to begin moving the Laurent family in on Feb. 12, 2022.
Mailani, 6, watches as Lauren helps her younger brother with his bags as they move in to their new home in Rochester, N.Y. on Feb. 12, 2022
Iesha moves her belongings into the new home on Feb. 12, 2022.
Miracle, 8, hugs her younger sister Mailani on the first day out of the motel.
The Laurent family adjust to living in their temporary home.
Lavaughn, 3, enjoying the wider amounts of space he has to play with his toys in TemPro housing on Feb. 14, 2022.