Village Support Network

Suppose you were a homeless family, and you had a hundred steps to get back on your feet. Wouldn’t you want a group of people supporting you, cheering you on, helping you keep track of your complicated life?

The Village Support Network trains people to do exactly that.  And they are looking for people in Gresham, who will help support and direct homeless families toward freedom and self-support.

If you are interested in getting information about participating in this program, please check out this website and contact the PHFS Volunteer Coordinator Matt at 503-915-8307 or matt@pdxhfs.org.

Blessings for Mid-County

Many people have driven by Blessings and said, "Oh, that's the store that's the same as Christian Supply."  Yes, they sell Bibles and Christian gifts, but they are also interested in meeting the needs of Mid-County!

Below the store there is a thrift store that sells gifts and clothes for down-to-earth prices.  A dollar for a t-shirt! Three dollars for a pair of pants!  And if you come in on a Tuesday, they have their stock at 50 percent off!

Also, they have a heart for the homeless in Mid-County.  They are seeking donations of blankets, sleeping bags, socks and meals-in-a-can (chili, ravioli, ready-to-eat soup, etc) which can be handed out to the homeless in their area.  These people really care about people in need!

NOT ONLY THAT!  But Nehemiah Project is establishing a food pantry for needy families.  It hasn't opened yet, but when it does, a family who can pay twenty dollars a month can receive more than a hundred dollars in groceries.  They are signing up now.  Food for the pantry can be dropped off at a barrel in the store.

Blessings is located at 10209 SE Division Ave., Portland.  If you'd like more information, please call them at 503-256-8000.   Check out their website here.

Store Hours are: 10:00 AM- 7:00PM Monday-Friday
                      10:00AM- 6:00PM on Saturday, closed on Sunday.

Thrift store hours are different, please call. 

My Sister's House

The story behind My Sister's House

In the fall of 2003, Becky Coleman to a personal retreat to menucha in Corbett, OR. One morning, well before dawn, God gave her a vision of a home for woman and children in transition. She got up and prepared for her morning jog, knowing it was still dark outside. she asked "God, if this vision is truely from You, and I believe it is, bring me back from this jog and I will run with it to make it a reality." God confirmed her vision, and He has been faithful to point her in the right direction. Her vision became a reality when My Sister's House opened it's doors in the fall of 2004.

The House

My Sister's House is a welcome refuge for woman and children in need. It has seven bedrooms which can house up to fifteen woman and children, and two extra beds where a woman can stay for a night in an emergency.

The Goal

The goal of this ministry to to have every family self-supporting and life-skill confident upon completing this program and moving into permanent housing. Each resident sets her own goals to improve her life in the following areas:

• Spiritual Growth and Maturity
• Continuing Education
• Positive parenting Skills
• Finding Future and Permanent Housing

Needs

My Sister's House is a non-profit organization with a volunteer staff. The only way they can stay open, to meet this vital need in our society, is through the faithful and loving support of our community. Everything at My Sister's House is donated in some way or another by our caring neighbors.

The following is a short list of our every day needs:

Prayers

Diapers

Formula

Paper Products

Cleaning Supplies (Windex, Comet, etc)

Canned Food (Tuna, Fruit,Veggies, etc)

Financial Support

Contact Information

P.O. Box 305

Troutdale, Or 97060

Phone: 503-665-1026

E-mail: mysistershouse@msn.com

Website: www.mysistershouse.net

Bethany House

Bethany House is a program providing homeless woman and children with supervised sponsor families (visit www.bethanyhousenet.org to learn more). This new, apartment community will provide homes for the homeless, single woman and children. Here, residents will have an opportunity to live independently while receiving a wide range of support services and resources designed to take them to the next level in successful independent living.

Bethany House

PO Box 3278

Gresham, OR 97030

Phone: 503-667-8409

Email: bethanyhouse1@gmail.com

Walk for Homeless Awareness

On Tuesday, November 15, there will be an inter-faith walk in downtown Portland to support awareness of the real facts of homelessness in Portland.

Did you know that the Portland metro area has the highest per-capita rate of homelessness of any city in the U.S.?

Did you know that half of Portland's homeless are families with children or youth?

Did you know that the center of homelessness is moving east, away from downtown and increasing in East Multnomah County?

Be a part of the awareness and be among the many congregations that are supporting the homeless in a variety of ways.

Get more information about the walk on JOIN's blog

Is Volunteering Overnight at a Homeless Shelter Scary?

When I first volunteered to monitor the overnight warming centers last year, friends and family thought I was nuts (nothing new there).  Not, as one might imagine, because I was up most of the night (I prefer the 2 a.m. to 8 a.m. shift), but because they thought it was “dangerous”.  And they asked me if I wasn’t scared.

Frankly, I didn’t quite know what to expect my first night, but what I encountered was so far removed from “scary” that I had to laugh.  Chaperoning a group of teenagers or hosting a child’s slumber party – now that’s scary!  But the biggest challenge in volunteering in a warming shelter was staying awake.  The sometimes cacophonous sound of snoring and the hourly fire checks helped keep the other volunteers and me from falling asleep.

Getting back to the chaperoning comparison, unlike some teenagers, those living on the streets do not come to shelters to party.  They come to avoid hypothermia and to sleep.  There are strictly enforced rules for behavior and the homeless community themselves enforce the rules.  Disruption is not tolerated.  There was only one time last year that there was a verbal altercation while I was volunteering, and other members of the “outside” community immediately nipped it in the bud.  The last thing they want is to jeopardize the shelters.  And unlike a children’s slumber party, the folks who use the shelter are not talking and giggling all night.  They are tired.  They have been on their feet all day.  They want to sleep.

And if your spouse is nervous about you volunteering, suggest that you do it together.  We love having couples.  Really, you will probably find it the easiest volunteering you have ever done.  All you have to lose is a little sleep on occasion, and you will be rewarded by knowing that because of your presence you may have saved fingers, toes or even a life.

-Sami Oeser for KEY Conversation on Poverty 

Overnight Shelter for Homeless Families

Human Solutions operates a winter overnight shelter for homeless families with children and single women at Eastminister Presbyterian Church.  Those who are in need of such shelter should show up at the church-- 125th and Halsey-- at 7pm.  The shelter is open every night from November 1 through March.


Those wishing to volunteer at the shelter should contact Amie Diffenauer  at adiffenauer@humansolutions.org


Human Solutions also has a day/night shelter program for homeless families called Daybreak.  Churches host the families in their facilities overnight and during the day the families are located in a regular space where they can eat, look for work and obtain resources to get back on their feet.  Families can sign up for this program’s waitlist by calling 503-256-2280.


For more information about the Winter Shelter or Daybreak program, call Human Solutions at: 503-256-2280.  To participate in the winter shelter, all you need to do is show up.  For Daybreak, you need to sign up.

For more information about Human Solutions, check out their website:

www.humansolutions.org

Vital Statistics: A Summary of Portland's 2011 Street Count

Some facts from the “2011 Point In Time Count of Homelessness in Portland/ Multnomah County, Oregon”

All statistics reflect the state of homelessness on January 26, 2011. This doesn’t give an accurate overall picture of homelessness in Multnomah County for many reasons, but the three primary reasons are:

-January is one of the lowest counts of homelessness of the year
-It is very difficult to find all the homeless.
-Many homeless ask not to be counted

Even so, this count is important because it gives a general idea of homelessness in the county, it is helpful in comparison to other cities and it helps us see the trends of homelessness.

To read the full report, please go to this link and download the free file

The Statistics:

2,727—People counted who are sleeping on the street or in vehicles or in shelters on the night of January 26.

1,928—People in temporary transitional housing on that night.

35—The percentage of increase of families who became homeless since 2009

751—Homeless children

9—The percentage of increase of homelessness since 2009

12—The percentage of veterans who are homeless

More than half of those living on the street were living on the street two years ago.

The count in East Multnomah County (East of 182nd) increased to 92 from a single individual in 2009. (A personal note: this is because of the participation of the day shelter programs in East County)

11- Percentage of homeless in all of East County (East of 82nd), where services for the homeless are scarce.

46—Percentage of homeless that have been homeless for more than 2 years

69—Percent of homeless that have been homeless for more than 1 year

52—Percentage of the homeless who have lived in Multnomah County for more than 10 years. However, the majority of the general population of Oregon do not originate from Oregon.

101—Increase of beds in shelters from 2009

53—Percentage of the homeless in shelters who are a part of a homeless family

37—Percentage of homeless women

35—Percent of homeless woman affected by domestic abuse

46—Percent of communities of color (non-white) on the street. In the general population, 29 percent are communities of color. African Americans and Native Americans are more represented on the street than other groups.