Tag: spiritus christi

Organizations collaborate to fill homelessness funding gap

Three area organizations will collaborate this winter to solve a $370,700 shelter funding crisis caused by the redirection of federal and state funding.

ESL Federal Credit Union, the United Way of Greater Rochester Inc. and Rochester Area Community Foundation said Thursday they will support short-term funding gaps anticipated by the Salvation Army of Greater Rochester, Spiritus Christi Mental Health Center, Volunteers of America of Western New York Inc. and the YWCA of Rochester & Monroe County.

“This is collaboration in its truest form,” United Way President and CEO Jaime Saunders said in a statement Thursday. “We are proud to work with ESL and the Community Foundation to invest in supporting those who are struggling this winter season. The work being done by the four shelter providers to address a more sustainable solution for the future speaks to the strength of the network and the drive to overcome challenges in our community.”

The four providers are working with Partners Ending Homelessness to develop a comprehensive evaluation and strategy for continued services, including advocacy and community investments necessary to replace the lost funding.

“This investment will assure those who need housing have access to it,” said Ajamu Kitwana, vice president/director of community impact at ESL. “We at ESL are inspired by the work being done by the four shelters, United Way of Greater Rochester and the Community Foundation to rally support for our community’s most vulnerable citizens. The collaboration taking place—from funding critical needs to working on long-term planning—is the type of action our community needs in order to address our most critical issues.”

Together the four agencies serve some 2,000 homeless adults and children. The Solutions to End Homelessness Program (STEHP), which uses federal funds allocated from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, combined with the New York State homeless assistance funds to help people obtain permanent housing and improve the quality of emergency shelters and drop-in centers, chopped funding for the four local agencies by $550,000 in October.

The Community Foundation reached out to donors who previously supported the shelter providers and asked for their help.

“When there is a crisis in our community, our donors respond quickly and generously—and they did that once again,” said Jennifer Leonard, the foundation’s president and CEO. “We are so fortunate that the needs of those who have little is of great concern to many.

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Four local nonprofits lose homelessness funding

As winter approaches, four local homeless service providers have lost more than half a million dollars in federal and state funding.

Together, the Salvation Army of Greater Rochester, YWCA of Rochester & Monroe County, Volunteers of America – Rochester and Spiritus Christi directly serve 2,000 homeless adults and children.

“Homelessness continues to be a critical issue in our community,” said  Angela Panzarella, CEO of the YWCA. Monroe County reported that just last year, it made more than 11,000 placements of families and individuals to local homeless shelters, a figure that was up 19 percent from the prior year. The YWCA provides shelter to more than 600 people each year—more than half of them children. “Without immediate financial support to offset the loss of STEHP funding, the YWCA and other providers may well need to reduce our emergency housing services to the most vulnerable members of our community,” Panzarella said.

STEHP funding refers to the Solutions to End Homelessness Program, which uses federal funds allocated from the Department of Housing and Urban Development combined with the New York State homeless assistance funds to help people obtain permanent housing and improve the quality of emergency shelters and drop-in centers.

The four Monroe County agencies will lose $550,000 in STEHP funding, officials said.

“Emergency shelter for local clients will be heavily impacted as more than half of the funding that the Salvation Army has received from the STEHP program in previous years has gone towards supporting this vulnerable population here across Monroe County,” said Major Douglas Hart, director of Monroe County Operations for the Salvation Army.” This funding loss will be especially impactful when temperatures drop to deadly depths during the winter months.”

The lack of money will force Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach to lay off staff at its programs for homeless ex-offenders.

“On any given night, there are more than 800 people—including children—who are homeless in Monroe County,” said Lynn Sullivan, president and CEO of Volunteers of America of Upstate New York. “Without adequate funding, we cannot provide… support services, let alone the basic necessities of food and shelter, which will lead to people experiencing longer and multiple episodes of homelessness as well as lack of shelter for those in need.”