| St. Lukes UMC provides shelter, training for homeless men By Candace Means UMConnection Correspondent  As temperatures drop and the economy worsens, the need for shelter for a growing number of homeless people is on the rise. A recent U.S. Conference of Mayors survey on homelessness found that requests for emergency shelter in 27 cites increased by an average of 13 percent; 52 percent of requests went unmet. The St. Lukes Shelter, a ministry of St Lukes UMC in Washington, D.C., has been helping individuals faced with homelessness since the fall of 1991. The mission of St. Lukes Shelter is to provide a transitional place for up to six homeless men. The shelter is open year-round from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m., seven days a week. The church balances the use of its facilities with a daycare center that is open when the shelter is closed in the morning.  Shelter residents are referred by social service agencies in particular Friendship Place and may stay for up to six months. Residents must be willing to comply with basic rules regarding curfew, personal hygiene, abstinence from drugs and alcohol, respect for other residents, and a willingness to address the causes of their homelessness. Getting a shelter started can be an uphill journey. According to the Washington Post, many advocates for the homeless feel that the not-in-my-backyard sentiment is one of the biggest obstacles they face. Steve Cleghorn, who heads the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Committee on Homelessness says that it can be a deal killer. This attitude was present at the creation of St. Lukes shelter. June Kress, a volunteer, has been working with the shelter since its inception. She recalls that the churchs former pastor, the Rev. Andrew Gunn, was having difficulty in establishing a program that people would support. After many setbacks, he decided to call several neighborhood activists to find a contingent who would help in creating a solution for the shelter. Kress was one of the activists called. Whatever initial reservations the community had have now dissipated. St. Lukes Shelter is now supported by three paid staff and a core of more than 75 volunteers from the neighboring communities who provide meals and occasional transportation, teach computer skills and assist with resumes and job searches. In addition, several restaurants and local businesses donate food for the dinner program including Margaritas Mexican Cafe, the Austin Grill and the Whole Foods Market. Kress said they have more dinner volunteers than space on the calendar. Volunteers who donate food may choose to stay and have dinner with the men. According to Kress, the men look like you and me. Several are well-educated. While the men do not mind dining alone, they also appreciate the company with dinner, she said. The next step for the shelter is to start a culinary arts training program. The program, Next Step Kitchen, will have four classes with eight students each and will help students land jobs in the food service industry. It would be open to men and women. The food prepared in the program would go back to community-based organizations. Using food as a tool to build community is really cool, Kress said. Of the more than 300 homeless men served at the church from January 1992 through December, 2001, nearly 40 percent completed the St. Lukes Shelter Program and went on to find jobs, housing or both. As many as one-third of the shelter population has had varying forms of mental illness. Kress reports that living at the shelter generally has a stabilizing effect while the men wait to find places in long-term living situations. The shelter as St. Lukes changes lives one at a time, Kress said. We help people change their own lives. | 
Login/Register to leave comment