Family Promise: Missoula churches prepare to host homeless families

Missoula churches prepare to host homeless families
By KIM BRIGGEMAN of the Missoulian


Things are rolling faster for Family Promise of Missoula, and Michael Hoffman was happy on Friday to give them a shove.

Ignoring a broken wrist encased in an Irish green cast, the St. Joseph Elementary eighth-grader helped tote from a corner in the school entryway piles of goods donated by the students of St. Joseph and Loyola Sacred Heart High School.

Boxes of everyday essentials – toiletries, blankets, canned foods and the like – went out the door and into the waiting car of Dean Thompson.

“Things like these are nice treats for families and certainly things that they’re going to need as they move toward independence,” said Thompson, the newly appointed director of the program that has assembled local congregations to provide emergency housing and support, on a rotating basis, to homeless families.

The supplies have been piling up at St. Joe’s and Loyola for a month after Hoffman hit on the idea of gathering them as a service project.

“There was an opening for a scholarship, and I thought it was a great idea to give back to your community,” Hoffman said.

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With the encouragement of his mother, Mary, who operates a hair salon in town, Hoffman wrote a letter to Beaches Beauty Supply, successfully soliciting toiletry items.

“I sent out a few emails to all the families that are part of Missoula Catholic Schools, and it’s just been growing since then,” he said. “It didn’t take much work, but I think it was a good outcome.”

In a way, Hoffman’s project is a microcosm of the expansive Family Promise program.

A non-governmental enterprise, Missoula’s is the fourth to be established in Montana, behind Billings, Bozeman and, most recently, Helena. Its starting date has been pushed back month-by-month as organizers gather resources to get to a point they’re almost at.

The target now, handed down this week from the national Family Promise headquarters, is May 13. That’s when Missoula churches will take turns hosting and feeding houseless families in weeklong rotations. By day, the two or three families involved at any one time will be transported to St. Paul Lutheran Church on Brooks Avenue, which has offered its Day Room to the program. From there they’ll leave for school or work, or look for work and housing.

Thompson will take over as director on April 2. He comes to Family Promise with the experience of 10 years as Missoula Food Bank’s community food security liaison and the past nine months as nutrition case manager for Missoula Aging Services’ Wheels on Meals program.

In those roles, and as a case manager at WORD before that, Thompson has worked with the homeless and hungry for years.

“I’ve certainly, unfortunately, witnessed what that means here in Missoula as far as seeing the kids who are affected,” Thompson said. “But there are some great programs here that I think we can work with to link families up with social services to help their kids, to be supported in their efforts to feel part of the community, and to get families back to independence.”

It’s been a long time in the planning – well over two years – but Family Promise of Missoula has a board of directors, a website, enough housing and support congregations to get started, and almost enough money.

“We’ve got two main issues right now, one of them being fundraising,” said Terry Burke, president of the Family Promise board.

The national Family Promise urges local programs to have one-third of their annual budget in hand before they start. That means with a budget of $108,000, Missoula’s needs roughly $35,000.

“We’re at about $25,000 now, but between now and May we’re hoping for a big jump,” said Burke.

The other need is transportation.

“We’re looking for a van of some sort or a commitment from somebody,” Burke said. “We had something lined up but that sort of fell through, so we’re looking very hard for something to transport families between congregations and the day center.”

To help, or to make a tax deductible donation to help purchase beds, supplies and the like, call (406) 351-3318 or mail a check to Family Promise of Missoula, P.O. Box 5882, Missoula, MT 59806.

Many other things are falling into place. With Thompson on board, a three-day training session conducted by Donna Lawson from the national office is set for April 12-14. Lawson will train Thompson and the coordinator and volunteers from the first host site at St. Anthony Catholic Church.

Thompson will then coordinate the training and screening of families. Less than a handful of families will be in the program at any one time and only for a limited time – six months or less.

“Right now we have 10 host churches,” said spokeswoman Sister Mary Jo Quinn. “We should have 12 because each one is set up to host every three months, but there are a couple of churches that have said they’ll do it (twice) if we don’t have 12 the first round.”

Several others have committed as support congregations, to supply food and/or volunteers.

“There are all these wonderful faith organizations in Missoula,” Thompson said. “They have buildings that can house people, they have a set of volunteers who are willing to work with homeless families and to be there to provide connections to the community – perhaps a job, perhaps affordable housing.

“My job with a social work background is to try to help people link up with services that might help to support that.”

The need is certainly there.

“The last statistics we saw had 400 homeless children at least enrolled in Missoula schools,” Quinn said. “We’ll have to find the agencies that will help us find these kids.”

As recently as March 7, a member of Family Promise’s core start-up team received a call from a local agency that had two families with eight children between them and were in critical need of shelter. Other shelters had waiting lists of five weeks or more.

“Sadly we also had to turn them away as we were not yet able to take in families,” Quinn said. “The need is critical for these hidden homeless.”

Other Resources - a list from the Missoula Food Bank

Other Resources - a list from the Missoula Food Bank

Every guest at our 3rd Street Store receives a copy of our Community Resource Guide, connecting them to the wealth of resources available in Missoula County. Download a copy here -- http://www.missoulafoodbank.org/images/stories/pdf_documents/Resource_Guide_Updates_3-2010.pdf, and feel free to reproduce and distribute it at will. A plain text version is available starting in two paragraphs down, immediately after "There are a few great places to start your search for help."

This is, by no means, an exhaustive list, and is always growing and changing. If you would like to see your organization included, or any information changed, email our Program Services Assistant and we will be happy to update our list.

There are a few great places to start your search for help:

First Call for Help offers assistance in navigating the resources available in the state. Call 549-5555 or 211 10am-5pm, M-F or visit www.montana211.org
Bridge to Benefits prescreening tools to determine which programs you qualify for. Answer a short questionnaire at www.b2bmt.org

These categories are covered below:

Crisis Hotlines
Emergency Shelter and Public Housing
Food and Nutrition (Food Banks and Soup Kitchens)
Health Care
Job Training, Employment Assistance and Continuing Education
Legal and Civil Rights
Other Services



Crisis Hotlines:

Western Montana Mental Health Center
Emergency 24-hour line 1-800-820-0083 or 532-9710

Suicide/Crisis Hotline
1-800-273-TALK

YWCA 24-Hour Crisis LINE
406-542-1944 or 1-800-483-7858

Missoula Police Department
911(or 24-hour non-emergency line 406-552-6300)

Missoula Sheriff’s Dept
911 (or non-emergency line 406-258-4810)


Emergency Shelter and Public Housing:

Poverello Center
728-1809. 535 Ryman Street. Temporary housing for homeless adults, free clothing and food pantry, laundry and showers. Daily hot meals and sack lunches to go served. Call for hours. www.thepoverellocenter.org

Salcido Center Drop- In Center
The Salcido Center which has been operating onsite at the Ryman Street Shelter since August 2010, acts as a drop-in day center for chronically homeless men and women.
Poverello can be contacted at 535 Ryman St. Missoula 59802. Or phone (406)728-1809. Email is poverello@montana.com

Salvation Army
549-0710. 339 W. Broadway. Provides short-term emergency financial assistance. Clothing and food pantry.www.salvationarmynw.org

YWCA Shelter
543-6691. Office 1130 W. Broadway. Counseling, skill building, and transitional housing for women and families. www.ywcaofmissoula.org

Missoula Housing Authority
549-4113.1235 34th Street. Public housing, Section 8 rental assistance and related housing services. www.missoulahousing.org

Human Resource Council
728-3710.1801 S. Higgins. Section 8 rental assistance, LIEAP utilities assistance program. www.hrcxi.org

Emergency Food and Nutrition:

For a list of other food banks throughout the region, check below:

Missoula Food Bank
549-0543. 219 S. 3rd W. Food distribution: 10am-1pm Monday-Friday; Evening distribution 5-7pm Monday and Tuesday. Monthly senior commodity delivery program. missoulafoodbank.org


Christian Life Center
542-0353. 3801 Russell. Food distribution: 2nd and 3rd Mondays 4-5pm (except holidays). www.clc-missoula.org


Clark Fork City Church
721-7804. 2811 Latimor Street. Food distribution: Saturdays 10am - Noon. www.cfccmt.org/Ministries/CityFood


Missoula 3:16
549-4673. 506 B Toole Avenue. Continental Breakfast: Monday-Saturday 7-9am; Soup and sandwich lunches Monday-Saturday at Noon. www.missoula316.org

Food Stamps program
SNAP/Office of Public Assistance
A division of the Montana Department of Health and Human Services 329-1200. Application Assistance Hotline: 1-800-332-2272. 2677 Palmer, Suite 100. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP program - formerly known as Food Stamps). SNAP application assistance also offered at Missoula Food Bank during distribution hours. dphhs.mt.gov


Senior Nutrition/Meals on Wheels
728-7682. Meals for homebound elderly and disabled. www.missoulaagingservices.org


WIC (Women, Infants and Children)
258-4740. 301 W. Alder. Nutrition and supplemental food program for low-income pregnant and nursing women, and children under age 5. www.co.missoula.mt.us


EFNEP (Expanded Food & Nutrition Educ. Program)
258-4207. Nutrition, meal planning and cooking instruction for low-income families.


Garden City Harvest
523-3663. Lease garden plots to grow your own vegetables.www.gardencityharvest.org
Call to exchange seasonal work for vegetables.


Humane Society of Western Montana
549-4796. Pet Food Pantry, call for availability www.myhswm.org


AniMeals
AniMeals No-Kill Adoption Center and Animal Food Bank
www.animeals.com - 1700 Rankin Street Missoula, MT 59808-1630
(406) 721-4710


Health Care:

Partnership Health Center
258-4789. 323 W. Alder. Primary care services to those with no or inadequate health coverage. www.co.missoula.mt.us/phc


Healthy Montana Kids Plan
Call 1-877-KidsNow Free or low-cost health coverage for children and teenagers up to age 19. dphhs.mt.gov


Health Department
523-4750. 301 W. Alder. Neighborhood nursing, well-child clinic, WIC, health screening, immunizations. www.co.missoula.mt.us/health


1st Way Pregnancy Support
549-0406. 1515 Fairview, Suite 250. Referral, pregnancytesting, support services for pregnant women. Diapers, maternity clothes. www.1stway.org


Planned Parenthood
728-5490. 219 E. Main. Services include female and male annual exams, pregnancy testing, birth control info/supplies. www.plannedparenthood.org


Missoula Indian Center -- UPDATE -- New location of the center is 830 W. Central Ave.
Read more on the new center at: http://missoulian.com/news/local/article_5a5a42b0-ba5c-11e0-aa46-001cc4c03286.html#ixzz1qHvtZzKn
Phone 829-9515 or 24-hour crisis line 721-2700. < Former location: Fort Missoula Rd, Bldg. #33.>
Outpatient health svcs. Provides health, nutrition, diabetes info and chemical dependency counseling. www.missoulaindiancenter.org


Adult Mental Health Services
532-9700. 1335 Wyoming. Case management and day treatment for adults with mental illness. www.wmmhc.org


Turning Point
532-9800. 1325 Wyoming. Alcohol and substance abuse treatment.www.wmmhc.org


Children’s Case Management
532-9770. Mental health services for children. wmmhc.net



Employment and Continuing Education:

Missoula Job Service
728-7060. 539 S. 3rd St. W. Job placement, training, employment counseling and resource center. wsd.dli.mt.gov/local/missoula


Vocational Rehabilitation and Blind Services
329-5400. 2675 Palmer, Suite A. Provides job training, placement, financial help for disabled workers. dphhs.mt.gov


Dickinson Lifelong Learning Center
542-4015 / 549-8765. 310 S. Curtis. Offers day and evening education classes for adults. thelifelonglearningcenter.com


Literacy Volunteers of America
542-4015. 310 S. Curtis. Offers reading tutoring.


UM Continuing Education
243-2900. www.umt.edu/ce


Legal Aid and Advocacy - Civil and Human Rights:


Montana Legal Services
543-8343 / 543-8344. 304 N. Higgins. Legal help to low-income people regarding landlord-tenant, disability, and other legal issues. For UM Students: 243-6213. www.mtlsa.org


Human Rights Bureau, MT
1-800-542-0807. erd.dli.mt.gov/humanright/hrhome.asp


Montana Fair Housing
542-2611. Investigates allegations of housing discrimination. www.montanafairhousing.org


MontPIRG (MT Public Interest Research Group)
243-2907. Resource for landlord-tenant issues. www.montpirg.org


Senior Help Line/Resource Center
728-7588 or 1-800-551-3191. Info about housing, transportation, health care and legal issues. www.missoulaagingservices.org/helpline


Crime Victim Advocate
258-4630. County attorney’s office. Helps with temporary order of protection, advocacy for crime victims. co.missoula.mt.us/opgweb/Grants/CVA


Child and Elder Abuse Help Line
Call 24-hours 1-800-332-6100 / 406-444-9810.


Other Services:

Child Care Resources
728-6446. 127 E. Main, Suite 314. Child care assistance. www.childcareresources.org

Parenting Place
728-5437. 1644 S. 8th W. Parenting programs and support. www.parentingplace.net

WORD (Women’s Opportunity & Resource Development)
543-3550. 2525 Palmer St., Suite #1. Renter education. Teen parent program. School-based Family Resource Centers. Homeownership education/assistance (HomeWORD). www.wordinc.org


Social Security Office
1-800-772-1213. 542-1580. 700 SW Higgins, Suite 5. www.socialsecurity.gov


Missoula US Veterans Center(406) 721-4918
500 N Higgins Ave, #202, Missoula, MT 59802 mtvetsvoice.com
Counseling/support for military veterans.


Refugee Assistance Corp.
721-5052. 715 Kensington #16. Support and referral for Hmong and Russian refugees.


Consumer Credit Counseling
543-1188. Debt management counseling. www.cccsmt.org


Summit Independent Living
728-1630. Advocacy and information for people with disabilities. www.summitilc.org


Community Dispute Resolution Center
543-1157. Mediation services.


Missoula Urban Demonstration Project
721-7513. 629 Phillips St. Promotes sustainable living through education and community projects; tool library. mudproject.ning.com

How about creating permanent housing options in lieu of sustaining continuing homelessness?

How about housing for the homeless?
by Patty Kent


Many good people have put forward continuing efforts to develop a new homeless shelter for Missoula. Certainly the task is daunting. But let's face it: The mere idea of anyone saying that they would like to provide nightly shelter and meals for 100 unrelated people, plus open the doors to an additional 200 people for lunch, every day, 24-seven-365 - it really doesn't matter who it is - the mere size and scale raises concerns. Perhaps instead of asking where we serve the homeless we might first ask how to best serve the homeless. And in doing so, might a location become apparent?

We actually do understand a lot about the needs of the homeless. A 2010 survey sponsored in part by the City of Missoula, combined with the annual statewide homeless count, illustrate a number of things. Most clearly, the surveys tell us that although the causes of homelessness and the faces of the homeless are diverse, one part of the solution is obvious and simple: safe, decent and affordable housing.

Interestingly, about half of the homeless surveyed have enough income to pay a modest monthly rent, but for the barriers to permanent housing: savings adequate for first and last month's rent plus a security deposit, credit checks, long term leases and of course, basic affordability. Unable to surmount even one of these issues, emergency shelters, the streets, cars, nightly motels and other precarious places become the housing of last resort.

The community as well as the homeless bear the burden of homelessness in many ways. Isn't it time to shift the paradigm? How about creating permanent housing options in lieu of sustaining continuing homelessness?

In this regard, Mayor John Engen and the Missoula County Commissioners have appointed a diverse group of Missoula movers and shakers who are working diligently to create a 10-year plan to end homelessness: "Reaching Home" will complete this task by year-end. Why not coordinate the development of a new emergency shelter with Reaching Home's work and simultaneously consider housing solutions for the homeless? Might this reduce the pressure and need for shelter beds? In other words, could we build a smaller shelter and instead increase options for actual housing?

The demand for housing the homeless is immediate. The only real question is how we choose to address and fund it. Ultimately, it comes down to all of us; community support, whether funds, food, clothing or volunteer time, is an integral if not imperative part of providing for the basic needs of the homeless. Given that key ingredient of community support, perhaps it's time to consider how we reduce the incidence of homelessness through the development of housing solutions that are sustainable both for the homeless and the community.
Safe, decent and affordable housing is the essential first step towards stability, health and self-determination. Let us not forget the end game.

Patty Kent is the director of Housing and Development for the Western Montana Mental Health Center, and has developed housing for persons with mental illness throughout western Montana for 18 years.

Health-related resources in Missoula

Here's a link to a useful guide to health-related resources -- through The Missoulian newspaper.