Future Directions
For any organization, the future is an opportunity with a foundation laid upon past success and present potential. For Shelter, Inc., 2001 will fill all three roles. We will work hard to good stewards of the experience of the past and the present potential so as to continue building a ladder of success for the family or single adult experiencing homelessness. We have successfully developed new programs and new sources of funding. We have an experienced staff and a knowledgeable board. Our opportunities lie in partnering with individuals and institutions in the community. Together we can be the hand helping someone out of poverty.
The success's of any organization is dependent upon its mission and how well it turns these words into action. As a non?profit organization providing housing solutions for homeless families and single adults, we have been successful in providing a quality service. With the development of a low barrier emergency relief shelter, we have been able to serve a far broader demographic. With additional space donated by the county for emergency family shelter, we have provided emergency shelter to every family in need since September 1999. An important part of this provision is the high quality services of our staff.
In 1989, the First Christian Church offered the use of its former parsonage, Campbell House, providing emergency shelter to four families and child?care for homeless children in a collaborative project with Head Start. The early nineties saw a growth in staff with a position dedicated to addressing the case management needs of the families and single adults, and to assist in locating help and housing from greater community. In November of 1992, Shelter, Inc. opened the Community Shelter Center on South Rogers Street in cooperation with Perry Township and the Community Kitchen. The new facility provided shelter was able to provide shelter to 36 single adults and provided a home to the Shelter, Inc.'s administrative offices.
In every survey, the residents of our shelter comment that we offer one of the best emergency shelters in which they have stayed. A large part of this quality of service has been the dedication of the staff to the organization's mission and as positions become available, the recruitment of equally qualified and dedicated applicants. In the past three years, Shelter, Inc. has gone from a salaried staff of three to a salaried staff of ten. We now have two people managing our thirteen facilities when before we did not have any. We now have a staff of two managing our family shelters where before we had one. We now have a staff of two managing our single adult shelter where before we only had one. We run a day center for the homeless and very low income, which never existed before last year. Ironically, it is this very development of strong programming, which also lends itself to one of our challenges for the coming year.
Additional staff needs places to call their own. Case managers need confidential areas to meet with clients. Facility managers need secure places to keep revenues. The organization as a whole needs places to meet, plan, and think. Further more, our operations have never been teeming with space. While we have never had to turn away an individual seeking shelter, we have often had to put someone on a temporary cot, sometimes as many as ten cots. Further developing a partnership with Perry Township and the Community Kitchen will be very helpful in meeting some of this need. The year 2001 will see Shelter, Inc. move into a co?located office space at 1010 S. Walnut in a partnership with the Perry Township Trustee and the Community Kitchen. Moving into this location will provide Shelter, Inc. at least 1250 square feet of office space currently unavailable to its staff. Further, grants have been awarded for a total of $140,000 to redesign the facility, located at 919 S. Rogers to best serves the needs of the hungry and the homeless for the next ten years.
Equally, if not more exciting, will be the opportunity for Shelter, Inc. to see the, completion of its first program providing permanent housing. 1999 laid the foundation for this project both in terms of funding and in community support. A grant of $50,000 from the Lilly Foundation will provide initial funding to purchase an appropriate building. An award of $480,000 from the Department of Housing and Urban Development will ftind the operation of this building for the next ten years. The year 2000, saw $312,000 awarded in grants to complete the financing of this project. The goal for the year 2001 will be to establish a program successful at providing permanent housing for the chronically homeless.
In 2000, Shelter, Inc. deepened its relationship with the faith?based community, especially with the First United Methodist Church. With the opening of the Shalom Community Center, Shelter, Inc. and the First United Methodist Church opened the first drop?in site for the homeless and very low income of South Central Indiana. Crucial to the development of the center has been the ability to share the vision, the credit, and the responsibility. Over a typical month, twelve communities of faith will volunteer and fifteen social service agencies will do outreach at this site. Eventually, we hope to have this site serve as a job training and apartment locating center, with a classroom set aside to teach computer literacy. Establishing this kind of center will certainly take a lot of effort.
Finally, we will need to continue to build upon our financial position. For the past two years, Shelter, Inc. has ended the year with a surplus. In 1997, the organization received just $50,000 in monetary donations. This past year saw that number rise to $108,000. Rather than put us on "easy street," this support from the community and more specifically from our Board of directors kept our operations at a relatively even keel while we finally able to bring our staff to a level appropriate for number of programs and facilities we operate. This year, we have set a goal of developing an additional ftmdraiser and raising the total amount contributed to the organization by $20,000. This goal and all of our goals are certainly within our ability but will require a dedicated effort on the part of all of those seeking to help those who have no where else to turn.