FRIENDS OF THE HOMELESS, INC....

is a private, non-profit 501(c)3 agency that owns and operates men’s and women’s emergency shelters, a day shelter and a soup kitchen on Worthington Street in Springfield, 78 low income housing units, and provides case management aimed at getting people into permanent housing.

DID YOU KNOW:

•  FOH AVERAGES MORE THAN 100% CAPACITY ALL YEAR LONG.
•  TWENTY-ONE PERCENT OF FOH EMERGENCY SHELTER GUESTS ARE WOMEN, MORE THAN 250 WOMEN PER YEAR. 
•  FOH TAKES SOME OF THE NEEDIEST, SICKEST AND MOST DANGEROUS INDIVIDUALS IN THE COMMUNITY OFF THE STREETS AND CONNECTS THEM WITH APPROPRIATE SERVICES.
•  THE CITY OF SPRINGFIELD DOES NOT DIRECTLY FINANCE FOH WITH ANY CITY TAX DOLLARS.
•  FOH SPENDS 70-THOUSAND DOLLARS PER YEAR FOR FOUR HOURS A NIGHT OF SECURITY FROM THE SPRINGFIELD POLICE DEPARTMENT. IT IS THE ONLY ON-SITE SECURITY PRESENCE WE HAVE. 

LEVEL BUT NOT EQUITABLE FUNDING
Last week Governor Deval Patrick released his FY2011 state budget. While there was seemingly good news for retaining the line item related to sheltering homeless individuals, it does not correct a serious inequity. People who are homeless in Western Massachusetts get a disproportionate slice of the pie. Friends of the Homeless Inc.'s shelters for men and women are seriously underfunded, receiving less than 14 dollars per bed, per night to provide emergency shelter and services. Please lend your support to the local legislative delegation so that they can fight for us on Beacon Hill. Parity with our shelters would more than double our daily compensation for providing vital, basic services to people In need. Thank you for your help. 

2010 promises to be an exciting year, full of possibilities. This is the year Friends of the Homeless will open its new resource center. The facility will make room for more comprehensive, solution-oriented services for people who are homeless. Please consider the important role you can play in achieving our joint goal of a healthy, housed community. Whether it is your time, talent or treasure, make it your New Year’s resolution to share it with Friends of the Homeless, Inc. We’re building a better future and we welcome you to join us. 

HOUSING SUCCESS

Twenty-eight people are in permanent housing today, thanks to The Homecoming Project administered by Friends of the Homeless Inc. and Catholic Charities. The Homecoming Project got off to a great start in the last quarter of 2009 which reported these results; seven individuals avoided homelessness with emergency financial assistance to maintain their housing and twenty-one individuals received assistance to obtain new housing. For those individuals who would have become or remained homeless, The Homecoming Project was the solution to their housing crisis. For The Homecoming Project, achieving these outcomes indicates success for individuals to access resources in the community that will assist them in being re-housed. Click here for more information about The Homecoming Project.