One Night Without a Home
from the Herald Review website-
Recognizing local homelessness
By Marie Nitke
Grand Rapids Herald-Review
This week is National Homelessness Awareness Week, and those closest to the issue in the Grand Rapids area don’t want it to go by unnoticed.
That’s why the GRACE House homeless shelter and KOOTASCA Community Action have coordinated two large events, both happening this week, to raise awareness about homelessness in the Grand Rapids area and to raise funds for local agencies that provide supportive services to the homeless (and those at risk of becoming homeless): The “Home is Where the Heart is” dinner, dance and auction, and the 5th Annual “One Night Without a Home.”
GRACE House homeless shelter will be holding its third annual major fundraiser, the “Home is Where the Heart is” dinner, dance and auction, on Saturday, Nov. 15 at the Timberlake Lodge in Grand Rapids from 5:30 p.m. to midnight. The event will feature music by Big Walter Smith and the Groove Merchants, as well as Mr. Pumpkinhead and special guest Sam Miltich. Funds raised at “Home is Where the Heart is” will go toward a new building for GRACE House. The shelter is currently located inside Zion Lutheran Church in Grand Rapids, and the board of directors is seeking a larger, permanent space which would not only house more homeless individuals and families, but also would allow for shared office space with social support agencies.
“Zion has graciously offered up space to us, but the hope is that when we are in our permanent shelter we can operate several agencies (such as Northland Counseling, the Veteran’s Administration, Action Through Churches Together and many others) under one roof so that services can be coordinated more easily,” said Teresa Sills, a member of the GRACE House board of directors.
Sills said GRACE House currently operates on a budget of about $170,000 per year. Once moved into the new building — which would double the number of beds available, from 10 to 20 — the shelter will cost roughly $234,000 per year to operate.
“We’re now in our third year of service, and we really rely on community support,” Sills said. “We feel we’ve been embraced by the community. It took us about one year to get funds raised and enough support generated to get the shelter started, and that’s really something to be proud of.”
Sills said GRACE House is “not a typical shelter.” Homeless individuals and families who stay there are called “guests” and are treated with respect. They are allowed to live at the shelter for up to 30 days, during which time they work on individualized plans to find employment, move out and, in time, become self-sufficient. They are connected to other services in the community that will help give them a “hand up — not a hand out,” said Sills. Since opening in May of 2006, the shelter has served 373 guests.
Becky Boelter, the Crisis and Homelessness Prevention Coordinator for KOOTASCA Community Action, said the slow economy has created a higher-than-usual need for homelessness support services.
“In the past year, we’ve more than doubled the number of people who have come in and are in a housing crisis,” Boelter said (those in a “housing crisis” are either already homeless or are vulnerable to becoming homeless). “Our biggest concern is that people can’t afford their housing, and there’s not enough affordable housing to go around.”
Boelter said many people become homeless when trying to move from one rental unit to another; they don’t have the cash to pay the standard security deposit and first month’s rent up front. Others sit on waiting lists for subsidized or Section 8 housing — the standard wait time in Itasca County is two years — because there simply aren’t enough affordable housing units in the area, and, as they wait, they can’t keep up with their current rents or mortgages and are forced into homelessness. According to a 2004 survey, 38 percent of homeless people in Itasca County are on a waiting list for Section 8 housing.
In hopes of raising awareness about these issues, KOOTASCA Community Action will be holding its 5th Annual “One Night Without a Home” event. The event challenges community members to experience first-hand what it is like to be homeless in Itasca County by spending one night outdoors, in a box or makeshift shelter, without any “comfort items.”
“One Night Without a Home” will take place Thursday, Nov. 13 in the old Kremer’s parking lot (next to M&H), starting at 4 p.m. and ending at 8 a.m. the next morning. Participants may begin setting up shelters at 4 p.m., and a Homelessness Awareness Walk begins at 5 p.m. Dinner will be provided via a soup line at 6 p.m., with judging of the youth shelters and conversations, storytelling, a bonfire and more to follow. Last year, more than 140 people spent the night for the event, and about 500 people were fed from the soup line.
“We are often asked, ‘Why do you do this sleep-out in November?,’” said Boelter. “And the answer is that we do it intentionally, during National Homelessness Awareness Week, because other communities do it, too… It’s cold, and participants are uncomfortable, even miserable, but it’s a safe event. If someone gets too cold they have a place to warm up, or they can choose to go home.”
Community members are invited to come and visit with participants at any time during the night. Donations will be accepted for local homeless families, including cash, blankets and personal hygiene items. Non-perishable food items will also be accepted for the local food bank. Participants should wear warm clothes and bring extra blankets, as well as materials to make a shelter, including duct tape and a tarp or large plastic sheet.
Participants must raise $300 to spend the night; for an additional $200, they can buy their way out of it. Funds raised go to the Itasca Sharing Fund, which is accessible to all agencies that help prevent homelessness or offer services to the homeless. Programs offered by these agencies are usually underfunded, and haven’t received new funding from the state, said Boelter, making major fundraising efforts like “One Night Without a Home” necessary.
To participate, or to make a donation, call Becky Boelter at 327-8653. Donations of soup or chili for the soup line are being accepted now.
Tickets for the “Home is Where the Heart is” dinner, dance and auction for GRACE House are available at Reed Drug or by calling 326-2790. Tickets for the dance only are available at the door.
Side Box:
Statistics on homelessness in Itasca County
• 54% of the homeless are male, 46% female
• Average age: 33
• 40% are currently employed; of those, 71% make less than $8/hour (compared to 41% statewide)
• 50% are high school graduates or have received a GED
• 28% completed education beyond high school
• 23% of men and 13% of women have served in the U.S. military
Housing concerns in Itasca County
• 1,348 rental units are substandard*
• 44% of renters live in substandard conditions*
• 5,362 homes are substandard*
• 36% of homeowners live in substandard conditions*
• Rental vacancy rate has been at 1% for years, and remains so
• Not enough subsidized, Section 8 and other affordable housing options
• A minimum wage earner would have to work 72 hours to afford Itasca County’s fair market rent rate
* Information is from the 2000 Census
Carrying a Box Article Source
http://www.grandrapidsmn.com/articles/2008/11/10/news/doc4914aa1f62813664988159.txt
a couple pictures from the event
Around the Fire
