The Lord’s Place, a Lake Worth-based nonprofit agency working to break the cycle of homelessness, recently broke ground on Burckle Place West, an expansion of its program for homeless single women.

The new facility, which is set to open in winter 2017 on South J Street in Lake Worth, will provide affordable housing for 11 graduates of Burckle Place, which helps single homeless women rebuild their lives.

“We’re so excited to have this new facility,” said The Lord’s Place CEO Diana Stanley. “We’ve raised all the money from private sources and we are not government funded.”

To date, $835,000 has been raised toward the Burckle Place West capital campaign of $1.4 million. More than 50 women have graduated from the program since its inception in 2013.

Stanley said they hope to raise an additional $600,000 toward the campaign.

Burckle Place’s traditional housing program helps residents rebuild their lives through a combination of support services and wellness programs, and the new facility will be a “graduate” program for women, when they are ready for the next phase in their journey.

Major funders include the Lost Tree Charitable Foundation and retired Kentucky real estate developer Ed Burckle, for whom the program is named.

Burckle said he was impressed by both Stanley and the agency’s focus on retraining, rehabilitating and refocusing the women to enable them to gain their foothold.

“I was surprised to learn how many older single homeless women there are,” he said. “Many have fallen on hard times and are living in the streets or in their car.”

“I never saw a program like this,” he said. “The agency just doesn’t feed and shelter them, but gives them training and tools to help them gain self-sufficiency again. I’m happy to give my money to this good cause and I wish more people would do the same.”

Stanley said she was taken aback by the unmet need for shelter and social services in an older population of women, many of whom were working or professional women with a good educational background and skills.

“It was a surprise for us,” she said. “Many women find themselves homeless, after their children are grown, they may get divorced and find themselves displaced. Our goals are to build community, a sense of purpose and belonging for these women.”

The program transcends the traditional housing model and emphasizes self-development and volunteerism to create positive relationships, networking and a support system.

Pamela McIver, chairwoman for The Lord’s Place Board of Directors, said, “We are delighted to have come this far in our capital campaign.”

“Our first dream was Burkle Place, where single homeless women could go, and our second dream is for Burckle Place West where they can go when they’re ready to move on,” she said. “Given the scarcity of affordable housing, these services will offer a continuum of living for these women and an opportunity for them to become more independent, while they get on their feet.”

Visit thelordsplace.org.

The ninth annual Lord’s Place SleepOut 2016 will take place April 15 at the United Methodist Church of the Palm Beaches, 900 Brandywine Road. The event is designed to bring attention to the issue of homelessness and help The Lord’s Place raise funds for its programs.

Registration for SleepOut is $25 with participants encouraged to form teams and raise additional funds through pledges from family, friends, neighbors and co-workers. Register for SleepOut or SleepIN at sleepout2016.org.