This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

The Centre Gears Toward Helping Women Get Back on Track

A local nonprofit has come a long way from its creation in the late 1970s and now offers programs for women and their families.

This week’s nonprofit spotlight features The Centre for Women - now just called The Centre - located at 305 S. Hyde Park Ave. Communications specialist for the organization Donna Prisley spoke with Patch about The Centre and how the community can get involved with it.

Patch: What services or programs does The Centre offer?

Prisley: We offer a wide range of programs and services to women and their families including Project Recovery (a substance abuse treatment program specifically for women), an employment assistance program for women, professional counseling services for families, The Centre for Girls (after school, holiday and summer program for girls ages 10 to 18), and an after hours treatment program for those at risk for substance abuse problems. We also provide home repairs and upkeep for low-income seniors.

Patch: Who does facilitate the programs that include counseling and therapy?

Prisley: We have a staff of qualified counselors and our director of programs for our Behavioral Health Services, Denise Dydowicz, holds a master’s degree in Social Work and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

Patch: How did the organization get started?

Prisley: It is a very interesting story how The Centre got started. Back in the late 1970s, Helen Gordon Davis became the first female state representative and she began noticing there was a huge number of displaced homemakers. Because of increased divorce or the death of their spouses, women were finding themselves in need of stable employment. Davis and a few other women started the Women’s Survival Center, which was an employment program that helped these women get jobs. Soon program facilitators began noticing many of these women had substance abuse problems and so The Centre developed the first ever substance abuse program designed for women, this was in the 1980s. Since then, The Centre has expanded to offer services for young girls and the entire family.

Patch: Who can use the services provided by The Centre?

Prisley: Anyone can use our services. We offer most of them on a sliding cost scale, and we do take insurance as well. Some of our programs, like our substance abuse program Project Recovery is court ordered. But, anyone who walks in our door is welcome and we will find a way to help them.

Patch: What annual events or fundraisers do you hold in the community?

Prisley: We host a community workshop each month, with topics like surviving on a reduced income. We also hold an annual event called the Gourmet Feastival, of which we just held our 20th one and raised over $62,000. We also have a yearly golf tournament. We are very grateful that we have such a loyal, local volunteer base. We have an organization called the 305 Circle, which is made up of more sustainable donors that pay for memberships to donate to The Centre. They attend meetings to find out how we want to use the money and they have a say in how we use it.

Patch: Are there local businesses or other partners in the South Tampa community that help support The Centre?

Prisley: Yes, we have lots of amazing partners in the community. The Hyatt Downtown has hosted our Gourmet Feastival for several years as well as our 305 Circle receptions. The Pita Pit on South Howard Avenue has also been incredible. The owner has donated food for our events and has been very generous to us. The Cleanse Apothecary in the Seminole Heights area has also been a great supporter.

Patch: How can people in the community get involved with The Centre?

Prisley: We are constantly looking for volunteers. There are many places we can use them. We are currently looking for people to help us cleaning the homes of elderly citizens and keeping their yards tidy. We also need people to visit our Center for Girls and teach the girls activities like crocheting or yoga. People can find all of our information regarding volunteering on the contribute page of our web site.

To learn more about The Centre and find out how to contribute or volunteer, visit its Web site or contact Yesenia Kalt at (813) 251-8437, ext. 225.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?