House in a Box® Program

Bishop Flanagan KOC Chapter is working with St. Vincent de Paul in San Antonio in a family assistance program. The program named House in a Box® provides a qualifying family with assistance following a disaster.

The objective of the SVDP House in a Box® Program is to provide new furniture and household goods to families that have lost everything because of a disaster. Families are interviewed and referred to the program through a Disaster Case Management (DCS) process that ensures that there is no duplication of benefits. SVDP buys furniture and household goods in volume through pre-screened vendors enabling them to provide a starter household/furniture kit at a greatly reduced price. All logistics for the House in a Box® Program are handled by the Disaster Services Corporation.

The goal of the program as stated by SVDP is to provide new household/furniture items for families who have lost everything as a result of natural disaster and are forced into situational poverty. The House in a Box® Program gives dignity to families in crisis as it provides them a new and fresh start. All families receive the same new items which are packaged for efficiency of delivery. The program is adjusted to the size of the family and starts at $2,500 for a family of four.

One package includes: beds, linens, dishes, pots and pans, dressers, silverware, bathroom setup, dinette and a couch.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Archdiocesan Council, has established a regional distribution warehouse for this program here at Port San Antonio. This warehouse will be the point of distribution to local warehouses located across the central and southern regions of Texas.