For three decades, Isaiah House in East Orange has been a lifeline for some of the families most in need in our state.

And now they're expanding the nonprofit recently received hundreds of thousands of dollars to help formerly incarcerated women get back on their feet after leaving prison.

Joanna Gagis explores how Isaiah House will use its long list of social programs to help women reentering society.

We basically provide what we call shelter from the storm.

We have multiple programs that are inside our shelter as well as outside of our shelter, where we assist people with kind of being a layover until they're able to get their footing and into stability out in the community.

Isaiah House in East Orange has been serving the community for 35 years, providing food, shelter and clothing along with mental health care, job training, day care, and so much more.

But this past year they received a $350,000 grant from the Department of Corrections to help women coming out of prison get back on their feet.

With this funding, we are allowed to have women who are just reentering society.

We can help them get stability, but we can also allow them an opportunity to have their children living with them.

In the process of gaining that stability, because we know that having been away from their children for so long, is challenging.

Women like Maria Pacheco Lopez, who was incarcerated for three years, separated from her eight year old daughter and five year old.

Son.

Before I. I leaving and to the halfway house, I don't have house.

So Isaiah House, they help me with the housing and then I can live with my daughter.

A lot of the women, when they come out, they have strained relationships.

They have relationships that they need to repair.

So a lot of them don't have places to automatically return to.

So that's number one need for them.

The second need I can tell is the mental health capacity.

A lot of the women, they come out of the jails and society, PTSD, depression.

Isaiah House partners with mental health providers who bring services right here to the women, along with parenting classes.

For those who are trying to reunite with their kids or regain custody.

In some cases, legal services are provided.

Like in Maria's case, who's working to regain custody of her son who lives with his father.

And they help the women find jobs, which is a critical component to preventing recidivism.

They might return to the things that got them sent back into places instead of jails.

You know, a lot of them turn back to drugs, alcohol.

Unfortunately, a lot of them just to get needs and basic, they turn to sex work.

So, you know, that's the things that we tried to dissuade.

But we were able to establish a memorandum of understanding with the community food bank, who was a longstanding partner, to have slots that are specifically held for our clients, for their culinary arts program and their warehouse program, where they can get a Six Sigma certification.

And with culinary arts, they get a culinary arts degree at the end and they pair them with employment.

So it's a win win.

Maria was able to get certified in phlebotomy during her time here.

The staff provided her transportation to those classes and to her paid job each day.

She's since applied for a job as a phlebotomist and as one of the few rules that residents have to abide by.

She's saving her money to eventually move out.

My plan is now live and continue living with my family, my mom, with my son, with my daughter and continue working and looking for a house.

Isaiah House is expanding early next year.

They'll be moving the women in this program into these homes, which is actually the site of their original building.

They'll be able to house up to 25 women and their children, giving them a second lease on life.

In East Orange, I'm Joanna Gagis, NJ Spotlight News.