Hope Haven wants to give homeless families in DeKalb a place to start anew.

Going beyond basic food and shelter, the blue house a few blocks off Annie Glidden Road offers families safety and a chance to save for the future.

Lisa Seymour is the coordinator for the transitional housing program. Separated from the temporary emergency shelter, the transitional program lasts longer and is relatively small.

“Right now, I have a total of 11 families,” said Seymour, “We can house 12 families, but it’s a two-year program and we typically are full.”

Seymour said Hope Haven is the sole shelter in DeKalb and this places an additional strain on all the programs it offers.

The program’s aim is to place the heads of household, most often women, in a position to earn a stable income and maintain their own residence within 24 months. Mothers and fathers must commit to a series of steps Hope Haven helps them set up.

“In a nutshell, if they come in and do not have a high-school diploma, it is mandatory that they get their GED,” Seymour said. “Right now, I have a total of four clients getting their GED. One’s doing so well he’ll be finished with the testing by December and be able to start taking classes at Kishwaukee College in the spring.”

Natalie Husky, a mother of three, is a client who works at 3M. She said she is happy with her job and hopes to take on more hours after finishing school.

“My goal right now is to graduate in May and go full-time at work,” said Husky.

She has been at Hope Haven since July and said the child care, classes and a little time to herself are all things she is grateful for.

“I’m happy,” Husky said. “I love my job, it’s very exciting. School is different everyday.”