CEO exemplifies a "third way" of doing business, with a board of directors and funding sources that are neither fully public nor exclusively private. While its original mission has not changed, CEO's approach to the needs of low-income and vulnerable populations has evolved over time. Recent changes in public policy have transformed the face of poverty from the "welfare dependent" to the "working poor." Recognizing the growing rates of child poverty in our community, CEO has added child- and family-centered services while sustaining and expanding its support for the independence of the aged and disabled. In addition to its highly regarded, multi-faceted response to basic human needs, CEO has become a recognized leader in energy conservation and environmental technologies that will lessen the effects of poverty in the future. As the new century unfolds, CEO is engaging business and faith communities in striving for flexible, local solutions to the challenges of poverty in northeast Pennsylvania. CEO views each involvement with a consumer as an opportunity to advance that individual's or family's movement toward stability, self-sufficiency and eventual non-reliance on public support. The journey from crisis and dependency to stability and self-sufficiency may take months or years.