Meeting people where they are on the path to healing.
We believe change is possible. We support all people in our community on their journey toward healing and autonomy.
How We Serve
With 52+ years of service to the Kenosha community, KHDS is a trusted partner and advocate for those in need of support. Through 35+ programs, our model of care is built around the whole person.
We answer the call, at every hour
A person answers. Not a machine, not a queue, not a callback in the morning. Kenosha has had a live crisis line at this number since 1974, and when a call needs more than a conversation, there are sixteen beds where someone can stabilize without a hospital admission.
We walk with people through recovery
Recovery is not one appointment. It is therapy, medication management, coordinated care, and a room full of people who have been where you are. Bridges Community Center alone held more than 1,300 peer-led gatherings in a single year. All of it is in one place, and most of it takes BadgerCare.
We find people a place to live, and help them keep it.
Housing first, then everything that makes housing hold. KHDS is the lead agency for Kenosha's Coordinated Entry system, which means one call starts the process no matter which door you came through, and twenty-five permanent supportive housing units stay leased for people who have been homeless the longest.
We stand with children, youth, and families
Some families need equipment and a plan so a child with disabilities can stay home. Some need a safe bed for a teenager tonight. Some need a young adult leaving foster care to have a landing instead of a cliff. Kenosha has one agency doing all three.
Our Mission
A community where all people receive the support and services they need — when, where, and how they need it.
Our work creates positive impact that spans generations.
The KHDS Values
Meet People Where They Are
Discover Opportunities
Find a Way
Empower Others
Make a Difference
What Cassi needed wasn't complicated. She needed someone to pick up the phone, know what was available, and stay with her until something opened up.
That's what Coordinated Entry does. It's the front door. One conversation, one assessment, and a person who keeps working the list on your behalf instead of handing you a stack of numbers to call yourself.
Cassi has an address now. She has a case manager she can still reach. And she is back to the ordinary business of being twenty-three.
Most people who come to us are not in crisis because of one enormous thing. They are here because of a handful of small ones that landed in the same month. That is a solvable problem, and it is the problem we solve every day.
Cassi's story is a composite drawn from the experiences of people served by KHDS. Details have been changed to protect privacy.
