One example? Sarah lived with untreated mental illness and became homeless after her mother unexpectedly passed away. She began to live in her car with her belongings surrounding her for warmth. Her circumstances led to a referral to MVHO. Sarah is now housed and connected to supportive services that help her on the journey toward improved independence.
“We always receive a great community response to our donation needs!” says fund development and communications manager Rebecca DeLong about the way in which our Make a Difference readers come through with wish list requests.
DeLong says CEO Debbie Watts Robinson steered MVHO through the trying times of the pandemic to ensure the group operated as usual to house homeless individuals and provide outreach to persons living on the streets. There was also a demand for pandemic-related services. “I knew how tough it was for me to go without adequate resources during the pandemic, and I could only imagine how tough it was for the persons MVHO serves,” says Robinson,. “We provided hygiene products and cleaning supplies.”
DeLong says lingering effects of the pandemic and upheaval in world events on the economy have resulted in additional expenses for MVHO and the clients they serve. “The cost of supplies to maintain MVHO housing is at levels unforeseen,” she explains. “Soaring inflation impacts the tenants even more because of their already very low income so we especially need items such as bus passes and grocery gift cards for emergencies.”
Homeless outreach programs
MVHO is also experiencing needs for its homeless outreach programs. The MVHO PATH outreach team operates Project Clean in partnership with Five Rivers Health Centers and the ADAMHS Board of Montgomery County.
Project Clean is a mobile unit equipped with showers and laundry services for persons living on the streets. Program Services Director Heather Wilson says there’s a demand for personal-size hygiene products and for cleaning supplies to scrub the showers and stalls. “We like to offer a fresh change of clothes for people accessing Project Clean,” Wilson explains. “In the past, we purchased basketball-type shorts, tee shirts, sweat pants, and pajama pants, but they go through them quickly.”
The PATH outreach team is on the streets in all kinds of weather and in places not fit for human habitation. They are there to meet with homeless clients to try to connect them to resources to move them from street homeless to a home.
PATH Outreach Specialist Andy Altenburg says he has a passion for helping folks who are overlooked or those who have burned all their bridges. It’s not unusual to find Andy outside in the early morning hours searching for homeless referrals MVHO receives. “People who sleep in their cars move around a lot,” he explains. “They will call to tell us where they will be that night, and we try to find them before they move on.” The program needs blankets, sleeping bags, and adult-sized underwear to distribute to street-homeless clients.
New Program serves those leaving jail
Reentry Program Director Penney Kramer has spent three years developing “Beyond the Walls,” a new program providing housing resources for homeless individuals with mental illness who are being released from the Montgomery County jail.
Here is what MVHO need for its variety of services:
- Sleeping bags (adult-size)
- Twin or queen-size blankets
- Twin or queen-size sheet sets
- Monthly bus passes
- $25 grocery gift cards
- Towels
- Shower cleaner
- Adult-size underwear (new)
- Adult-size basketball type shorts (new)
- Adult-size tee shirts (new)
- Adult-size sweat pants (new or nearly new)
- Adult-size pajama pants (new or nearly new)
- Personal size shampoo, body wash and toothpaste
- Pots and pans
- Serving utensils
- Dinnerware (service for 1-4)
- Silverware
- Note that the bus passes, grocery gift cards for emergencies, bedding, towels, and kitchen supplies are for tenants moving from homelessness into MVHO permanent supportive housing programs.
Donated items may be delivered to Miami Valley Housing Opportunities, 907 W. 5th St., Dayton, OH, 45402, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For more information about MVHO, or if you want to contribute online, visit www.mvho.org or contact Rebecca DeLong, 937-263-4449, ext. 415.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Meredith Moss writes about Dayton-area nonprofit organizations and their specific needs. If your group has a wish list it would like to share with our readers, contact Meredith: meredith.moss@coxinc.com.
Please include a daytime phone number and a photo that reflects your group’s mission.
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