My Sistahz Keeper Association (MSKA), a 501(c) 3 entity, was created with a vision to promote awareness and empowerment for all women and families throughout New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

Our mission:

The mission for My Sistahz Keeper Association is to be the vehicle by which women and families can thrive and grow in the community of their choice.

Our Vision:

Our vision is to become the foremost leading organizations serving women and families in urban communities.

Our Goals:

• To create stable community environment for the women and families we serve.
• To develop programs that offer coaching for disadvantaged individuals.
• Develop future leaders

Our Plan:

• Developing partnerships
• Recruiting top professionals in the field
• Establishing a quality service component that focuses on research, development and measures the outcomes of our established programs.
• Create educational conferences/workshops that educate other organizations/communities of out findings.

We are seeking to do this by developing community resource centers, transitional housing, and battered women's shelters. Our target populations for our programs are low income women and families with diverse needs that include those returning from incarceration, those who have experienced long term homelessness, unemployment and/or substance abuse, as well as women living with HIV or Aids.

Our History

My Sistahz Keeper Association (MSKA) was established in June of 2004. It was the collective brainchild of a group of women who have a desire to do more for the communities from which they come. With personal stories that include single parenting, victims of domestic violence, lack of resources due to limited education, and limited support from the community in which we live; We decided that we would become the agency that would offer hope to women like us. In essence they decided to be a KEEPER.

Scope of Our Services

MSKA operates a variety of supportive services to women, men, and adolescents. In addition to our residential services that we are seeking funding for; we operate community based programs such as our Community Resource Centers. Our center located at 877 Broad Street suite 213 in Newark, NJ. We are open Monday thru Saturday. We currently receive referrals from a variety of social services agencies. January 2009 our Women's Resource Center opened in Jersey City, NJ. This center will primarily focus on services for women returning from incarceration and young women who are at risk.

Some of the services we offer are:

· Re-Entry Program, designed to help strengthen urban communities by assisting formally incarcerated persons who are re-entering the community through education/employment-based programs that incorporate mentoring, job training, and other concrete services.

· Girl Scouts troop for girls 9-11 years old.

· Contracted Work site to offer career coaching for Department of Labor workers.

· Professional Development workshops.

· Little Sistahz Support services

· Anger management groups

· Empowerment and Self Development workshops

· Monthly Community soup kitchen.

· Food and clothing assistance to the community.

· Literacy assistance for persons who are registered in a GED program but need more one on one instruction.

· State recognized Narcotics Anonymous Women's meeting site.

· Relapse Prevention support group.

· Domestic Violence prevention services include a support group;

· Strengthening Families Parenting Program as well as EPIC parenting program.

· Yoga, Chess, Self Defense and Massage Therapy.

· Legal Document preparation clinics.

· Case Management, Information, Advocacy and Referrals services.

While the agency is new, our staff is seasoned. We have identified a variety of collaborative agencies to partner with to offer services to our identified population. We are working very hard to open transitional living homes for women with diverse needs in Newark and Jersey City, NJ as well as Philadelphia, PA. We are seeking federal, state and private funding to finance our residential and non residential programs. We understand that one of the most important challenges facing social services agencies today is the need to implement performance-based services that align with their mission and goals. We are working to develop a Quality Assurance component that will create bench marks to evaluate our ability to meet the needs of our community.

Contact Information:

My Sistahz Keeper Association My Sistahz Keeper Association

Community Resource Center Women's Resource Center

877 Broad Street, Suite 213 779 Bergen Avenue, Suite 210

Newark, NJ 07102 Jersey City, NJ 07306

973-624-2400 201-985-3900

973-624-2405 fax 201-985-3800 fax

Website: www.MySistahzKeeper.com

Our Staff

Kiwan N. Fitch Executive Director

Angela Goodson Program Coordinator

Brian Fulston Executive Assistant

Valarie Sims Resource Center Assistant

Curtis Murph Case Manager/PRI Mentor Coordinator

Lisa Smith Case Manager/Youth Advocate

Stephanie Cummings Case Manager/youth Advocate