Southeastern Tidewater Opportunity Project of Hampton Roads

STOP is an acronym for Southeastern Tidewater Opportunity Project of Hampton Roads, also known as The STOP Organization-Hampton Roads. STOP and was created in 1965 as the designated Community Action Agency to serve the Southeastern Tidewater Virginia area. Governed by a dedicated board of directors, STOP employs more than 50 highly skilled staff members who implement 15 programs with funding from 11 Federal, State, Local, and Private sources. STOP operates in the Virginia Planning District #23 serving the cities of Chesapeake, Franklin, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach along with the counties of Isle of Wight and Southampton. STOP’s target population encompasses households at or below 125-percent of the poverty level as identified by the Federal Government. STOP’s mission is to provide a range of strategies and initiatives which have quantifiable and potentially major impacts on the root causes of economic disadvantages. STOP focuses its efforts on areas impeding the achievement of self-sufficiency among hard-working, low-income wage earners. Several initiatives identified for service delivery include Child Care, Crisis Intervention, Education, Employment, Health, Housing, Nutrition, and Youth Services. STOP recognizes that specific dysfunctions within a family are general indicators of multiple problems; therefore, the “Total Family Concept” is espoused in its service treatment of the problems. Through its diverse initiatives, STOP has years of experience providing individual, family and community development action plans for people and communities experiencing economically challenging situations. STOP recognizes the need to collaborate with other agencies and organizations to positively impact and change the plight of the economically disadvantaged.

Crisis Intervention Initiative (first month’s rent, hotel/motel costs, rent/mortgage payments, homeless services); Home Equity Conversion Mortgage; Home Weatherization Initiative; Housing Counseling