Service groups create life-planning program

PROVO — Community Action Services, the Food Bank and Habitat for Humanity of Utah County are working with the state to pilot the first "Getting Ahead in a Just-Getting-By World" group in Utah County. The facilitated group will begin Wednesday with 12 to 15 adults, who are Habitat partner families or Community Action clients.

The Getting Ahead program is a step-by-step life-planning program that includes facilitated education, group support and hands-on experiences. The goal of the program is to help area families work together to break the poverty cycle, find solutions to community issues and build bridges to a more stable and productive life.

The pilot group will be led by trained facilitator Julie King and will follow a workbook with various modules written by Phillip E. DeVol. The pilot project is expected to last 10-12 weeks and will be held weekly for two hours on Wednesday evenings at the Scenicview Center in north Provo. A second group is planned to begin in the fall.

Contact Kena Mathews at 801-344-8527 or kena@hfhuc.org, or LoAn Le at 801-373-8200 ext. 231 or lle@communityaction.org.