Founded in 2005, Dress for Success Pittsburgh was established to empower women to become self-sufficient and exit poverty. From our beginnings in a church basement serving 69 women the first year, we have grown to four branches serving five SW Pennsylvania counties and working with over 150 referral partners. Today, we provide clothing and employment readiness support to women across the region.
While we may be best known for providing suits and professional clothing to women, we are first and foremost an anti-poverty organization that focuses on providing a continuum of support and opportunities for vulnerable, low-income women to compete, advance, and support themselves and their families without the need to rely on public assistance.
We achieve our mission through providing suiting and uniform items for women. Women are referred to us who are currently interviewing or who have secured work and need appropriate clothing items. The women we serve work with suiting specialists to choose appropriate clothing for their needs. Additionally, during these consultations, women are provided with interview preparation skills.
Social Services & Employment Readiness
The Homeless Children’s Education Fund (HCEF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1999 to support the educational needs of children experiencing homelessness in Allegheny County. Over the years, HCEF’s role in the community has developed and expanded to meet these needs. HCEF relies on support from community foundations, corporations, and individuals and receives no governmental funding.