At our Annual Meeting on June 29, we will officially change our organization name to Family Promise of Philadelphia.
When we incorporated as Northwest Philadelphia Interfaith Hospitality Network Inc. thirty years ago, our founding congregations joined a growing group mobilizing their local communities of faith nationwide to provide shelter and hospitality to families experiencing homelessness.
Our national organization, once called Interfaith Hospitality Network, changed its name to Family Promise more than fifteen years ago. The new name identifies a mission with multiple approaches to taking on the challenges of family homelessness/ The Interfaith Hospitality Network congregational shelter program was seen as one component of the services needed to tackle such a large problem.
Like the other Family Promise affiliates around the country, our service model has expanded to provide an array of local solutions to the problem of family homelessness. Unlike most of those affiliates, we chose not to change our name.
Last year, Family Promise asked PIHN and two other affiliates based out of Ambler and Norristown to change our respective names to recognize our Family Promise identity. We agreed so that all Pennsylvania affiliates will now be joined with the majority of the 200+ affiliates nationwide who are proud to identify Family Promise within their names.
We believe that the words "Family" and "Promise" embody two core concepts:
The promise we make to families
The promise each family has - their potential.
By changing our name to Family Promise of Philadelphia ( FPP ), we:
Commit to preventing and ending family homelessness.
Associate with a national organization whose mission is clear.
Benefit from national branding and promotion.
Gain advantages in fundraising, public relations, and partnerships.
Our Identity, Network, and Hospitality Program
What is not changing is that interfaith work remains core to our identity.
Together, our interfaith network engages people of faith following our shared values of providing hospitality to our neighbors in the Abrahamic tradition. As such, Interfaith Hospitality Network will remain the name of FPP's congregational-based shelter and hospitality program.
Watch out for our new website, branding materials, volunteer opportunities, and new programs to come!
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