Creating a Community of Support: Zaman International

United Way for Southeastern Michigan’s partner, Zaman International, is providing a community of support for women and children to break the cycle of poverty. It’s Zaman’s mission to move clients from crisis to stability, and then to sustainability.

“It’s a place that helps you get where you need to be, especially for single moms,” said one Zaman client. “The help is very big since we are away, and far from home and family.”

Zaman serves a diverse community that includes a large middle eastern population. The entry point for many families is the Bayt Al-Zahra Case Management Program, which provides emergency relief to women, children and recent refugee families struggling to obtain food, clothing and shelter.

“Most women we serve are widowed, separated or divorced,” said Maya Mortada, director of health services at Zaman. “Many clients are single moms with three or four children, and they are coming from very vulnerable situations.”

ONE STOP SHOP

Zaman’s Hope for Humanity Center in Inkster is home to the organization’s client choice food pantry, Good Deeds Resale Shop, community health center, culinary kitchen and Rising Hope Bakery – making it a one-stop-shop for clients.

About 500 families utilize the client choice food pantry every month to access culturally appropriate and nutritionally balanced food with a wide range of ingredients including meat, dairy and produce.

“I want everyone to know that Zaman is supportive to the point you won’t be embarrassed to ask for help,” said one Zaman client. “They help you with all aspects of your life from your health, to parenting to your food needs.”

Zaman’s community health center provides free wellness exams and lab draws, chronic disease management program, extended appointment times, one on one medication education with a pharmacist, nutritional counseling, as well as help navigating healthcare and Medicaid.

“With the health center, it’s mostly about giving the clients a place that they’re comfortable to receive services— where they feel safe and heard and understood,” said Maya. “They’ve already trusted us in so many aspects of their life, so it eliminates another barrier, and we become a one stop shop.”

In their Good Deeds Resale Shop, gently used clothing is vetted to be high-quality and clean. Everyone is welcome to shop the great prices. Clients are offered Client Choice Shopping, where they can pick out necessities for free.

TAKING TIME TO BUILD COMMUNITY

The Bayt Al-Zahra Case Management Program develops personal relationships with clients through home visits and regular in-person consultations. This type of care creates a community where everyone feels seen and heard.

“It’s very personal, I was looked at as a whole person and never felt rushed,” said one Zaman client. “For the first time, I feel like I’ve been taken care of the proper way which made me feel so comfortable and valued.”

It’s not just about providing the basic needs, Zaman is setting up families to be self-sufficient, regardless of how long the path to thriving takes.

“We don’t want to rush people through a one-year program, only to have them not be able to retain success after that year,” said Maya. “We take clients from start to finish— it could take an hour to 5 years for them to get stabilized.”

In Zaman’s Building Ongoing Opportunities through Skills Training (BOOST), tuition-free classes help women enter the job market or start a small business. BOOST offers courses for literacy, GED, entrepreneurship, sewing and culinary arts.

REMOVING LANGUAGE BARRIERS

Language can be a huge barrier for a family looking for assistance. Help is inaccessible when needs can’t be communicated.

“I feel comfortable around the people at Zaman since they speak Arabic,” said one client. “I don’t have to worry about the language barrier, and I was always worried about this.”

The ability to communicate in your preferred language is a huge community builder at Zaman. Speaking Arabic with clients and having translators provides more opportunities for connection.

“The language accessibility and then the cultural accessibility, particularly for women’s healthcare, it’s so important,” said Maya. “It removes the barrier of mistrust because ‘they speak like me; they look like me’ and it eliminates misunderstanding.”

The language accessibility and then the cultural accessibility, particularly for women’s healthcare, it’s so important.” – Maya Mortada

From a place of trust, Zaman offers individual and group therapy, depression and anxiety screenings, a monthly Emotional Wellness Support group, and biweekly Emotional Health Workshops, and an online Parenting Class.

“I feel Zaman is a community that makes you get reborn,” said one client. “I felt like I was dying, and it made me alive again.”

Want to help build the Zaman community? Click here for volunteer opportunities at the Hope for Humanity Center, including cooking, baking, assisting the sewing program, translating Arabic to English and sorting clothes for Good Deeds Resale shop.