LifeLine began in September of 2003 when Angela Giessner (LifeLine founder) learned of a homeless boy living in an alley in a box behind a local grocery store. She contacted a counselor at the school district to learn more about his situation, but what she ended up learning was that there were more than 1,200 identified homeless children in the GPISD. These families were doubled up with other friends and families on couches and floors, some living in their cars, and others living in sheds and other non-human inhabitable situations. Unfortunately, there were no homeless shelters in Grand Prairie. Angela was determined to remedy this homeless problem for students. She pulled together influential people including executive directors’ from local charities, pastors, business professionals, a local attorney, and other concerned citizens, all of which knew there was a service gap with homelessness in Grand Prairie. They soon caught the spirit of Angela's passion for children and their families. This led to the creation of LifeLine Shelter for Families. LifeLine uses local apartments for shelter rather than operating a shelter facility. The first family placed was put into an apartment because there was no other place to put them. In the beginning, there were thoughts of building a traditional shelter, however, Angela soon came to realize that we were perhaps fortunate, because we didn't have the expense of a building to maintain, insure, or staff. Apartment complexes already have those things under control. Therefore, LifeLine decided to place our homeless families in apartments. Also, by sheltering in apartments, no one knows the family’s situation. Our families tell us that they appreciate the privacy and dignity that it allows them. To date, LifeLine has sheltered over 7,000 people in apartments and over 90% are single mom families.
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