Daughters of Ruth

This past Saturday, Daughters of Ruth celebrated their grand opening in Chillicothe, Ohio.  DOR is a new emergency shelter & mentoring program for homeless women & children.  DOR's mission statement says they are "a faith-based organization committed to affecting positive change in the lives of women in and around Southern Ohio through crisis management and prevention, life-skills education, job placement preparation and character development."

Similar to Homes of Hope, Daughters of Ruth is not just an emergency shelter.  It is also a mentoring program.  Each woman that comes to Daughters of Ruth has the opportunity to be considered for the mentoring aspect of the program.  If they qualify, women will have the chance to be placed in trained mentoring homes where they will be assisted with living expenses, childcare, job search & placement, and education.  They will also be assisted in learning life skills and achieving goals from their personalized care plans.

DOR believes that the church is the "vital link" in ending homelessness & that Jesus is our example in reaching the poor & homeless in our community.  The shelter is volunteer-driven, and they are still in need of volunteers.  If you're interested in volunteering at the shelter, please contact DOR at 775-RUTH.

Also, the shelter will be accepting food, baby items, and toiletries on a consistent basis.  For more information on what is needed, please call 775-RUTH.

We at Homes of Hope welcome Daughters of Ruth to our community & pray that God will abundantly bless each woman & child that comes through your doors!  We're excited to celebrate with you as you obey the vision God has given you to strive to end the cycle of homelessness in our community, and to show the love, hope, & grace of Jesus to all who come to your door.  Blessings on your ministry!!

Memorial Walkway

We at Homes of Hope have been working hard to restore & rehab a home given to us this past December.  We've affectionately dubbed the job the "Paint St Project."  The Paint St Project will soon be home to the Love INC offices & a new Homes of Hope house!

While we and many families, businesses, and churches in Chillicothe have been hard at work to finish the project, we are still in need of finances to finish.  With that in mind, a couple of weeks ago we began a financial campaign we call the "Buy-A-Brick" fundraiser.  Anyone who is interested can purchase a memorial brick ($50 each) and can have a personal inscription added (3 lines, 20 characters per line).  Each brick purchased will be used to create a memorial walkway at the Paint St Project.

If you are interested in purchasing a brick, please feel free to contact us at 740-774-HOPE!

The Face of Homelessness

Growing up, the above image is what consistently popped into mind when thinking about homeless people.  I thought of elderly women pushing around grocery carts full of stuff.  Maybe it's because sometimes that's what is portrayed in movies.  Or maybe it's because there was an older, disheveled looking lady that always pushed a cart around my neighborhood.  Who knows.

 

The older I got, when I thought of homeless people, the image below popped into my head.

Both of the above images are accurate depictions of homelessness.  There are many bag ladies who walk the streets of numerous big cities and small towns.  We've all seen the guys standing on the street corner with the "will work for food" sign.  But these images are only accurate to a certain degree.

When we think of homelessness, these are the images we conjure up.  But we forget about the family who just lost their home to black mold and are staying in a hotel.  We don't think about the single mom living with a friend while her teenage daughter has to live with her grandmother.  And we can't possible imagine the 150 plus kids who go to school with our kids who are sleeping on couches or floors every night while our kids are tucked in safe and sound in their own bed.

The new face of homelessness is children & families who have lost their homes for one reason or another.  Listening to their stories is heartbreaking & overwhelming.  But, there is hope for each and every one of them.

Homes of Hope exists to to help highly motivated homeless families begin the journey towards self-sufficiency.  Our mission is to mobilize the Church to transform lives and communities in the name of Christ through transitional housing and support services.

When you think of homelessness, what do you picture?  What are you doing to bring hope to the lives of the homeless in your community?



Extreme Makeover: Homeless Edition?

This past week the team from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has been in Columbus building a brand new home for a deserving family.  The local news channels have all been covering the build, and it's pretty exciting to watch. 

If you don't know what I'm talking about, let me give a brief explanation of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.  EMHE travels across the United States building new homes for deserving families whose homes are falling apart, and in some cases, really ought to be condemned because they're so unlivable.  It's a heart-warming show, and it truly changes the lives of the families who get a new home.

But as I've been watching the show and seeing this house being built, there's a thought in the back of my mind.... why aren't they building houses for homeless families?  Homeless families don't have a house that's falling a part.  They don't have a home.  Period.

Unless you consider the shelter they sleep in every night. 

Or the couch of a friend.

Or the park bench. 

Or the back of their car. 

Or the tent alongside the river.

But there's hope: Homes of Hope.

While Homes of Hope doesn't build homes for homeless families, we do provide transitional housing for them.  We provide a place of love and support for 3-6 months, allowing families to get back on their feet again.  We offer mentoring, budget counseling, and tutoring for children who are struggling in school.  We rally around these families and show them that there is hope.

Hope for now.

Hope for the future.

Hope that one day there will be one less homeless family in the world.

Jeremiah 29:11 says, 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'  That is the promise we hold on to here at Homes of Hope for all the homeless families in Ross County & beyond. 

When you see shows like Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, what do you think? Should we build homes for homeless families?

The Truth About Homelessness

Homelessness isn't something new to most of us.  We've seen it first-hand while visiting a big city such as Chicago, New York, or maybe even Columbus.  Or perhaps we've seen something on the news or while reading the paper. 

For those of us in the small city of Chillicothe, Ohio, homelessness is becoming more visible.  It's difficult to drive down Bridge Street without seeing the men & women standing there holding their signs asking for help.

Maybe you've given them a dollar or two.

Or maybe you haven't.

Maybe you've asked them their story.

Or maybe you just assumed they're lazy.

There are a lot of myths surrounding homelessness.  And then there's the truth.

The truth is, many homeless people are not homeless by choice.  More than half of the homeless are homeless due to a financial crisis that has occurred because of a loss of a job, divorce, or sickness.

The truth is, many homeless people are not lazy.  Many of the homeless are considered to be the "working poor," meaning they work 27 hours or more and are at or below the federal poverty level, and sometimes make too much for government assistance.

The truth is, many homeless people are not drug addicts, alcoholics, or mentally ill.  Only 1 out of 5 homeless people report drinking on a regular basis, and less than 1/3rd suffer from a mental illness.

The truth is, many homeless people are not middle-aged or elderly men.  The average age of a homeless person is 9 years old.  The fastest growing group of homleless is families with children.

The truth is, the homeless community of Ross County needs hope. 

That's where Homes of Hope comes in.  We're a relational ministry of Love INC (Love in the Name of Christ) whose mission is to mobilize the Church to transform lives and communities in the name of Christ through transitional housing and supportive services.  Our goal is to help highly motivated homeless families get back on their feet and be successful on their own.  We're not just an emergency shelter.  We're a transitional housing program.  Each family is mentored and given budget counseling, health & nutritional training, tutoring for children, and pastoral counseling.  We love and support them through the process, and follow-up with each family for a year after they've graduated from the program.

The truth is, Homes of Hope is an effective ministry with an 80% success rate & is changing the lives of the homeless in Ross County, Ohio.

As you drive down Bridge Street and pass the homeless men & women holding their signs, pray for them.  Ask them their story.  Show them that there's still hope.