I was happy to see your coverage of the homeless shelters in Amherst and Northampton. As the head of Friends of Hampshire County Homeless, I would like to add something on our role in addressing this situation. Since gifting the Interfaith Shelter location to ServiceNet in 2002, we have remained an active partner in shelter operations. Every year we have given approximately $25,000 in financial support; replaced appliances and furniture and repainted the shelter; and provided home-cooked dinners each night for six months brought by our volunteer teams. We also stock the shelter kitchen with breakfast foods, staples, cleaning supplies, and all necessary cookware and tableware; and arrange for shelter laundry runs. The Friends also provides help with prescription costs for guests who are waiting for state insurance coverage; security deposits for guests who gain enough income for a rental space but find the deposit an obstacle; and offer toiletries, clothing, and sturdy footwear for those who need it. The total cost of our assistance (including volunteer hours) is in excess of $150,000 yearly.
In addition, we provide $6,000 yearly to Manna Community Kitchen for their meals, much of it collected by our Happy Frog sculpture downtown. Recognizing that the true solution to homelessness is housing, the Friends since 2008 has created three housing sites which house 20 people at any one time, and currently is collaborating with Independent Housing Solutions in creating another program which soon will be housing 16 homeless individuals with disabilities or serious medical challenges. We have been enabled to do all this by the generosity of many who have supported us year after year with their donations and time. The Friends of Hampshire County Homeless would like to thank all who have aided us in our work; and to invite anyone interested to join us. We can be reached at our website: www.hamphomeless.org.
Rick Hart, president of Friends of Hampshire County Homeless Individuals
Leeds
