Churches support Cape Region’s homeless

Funding priorities for Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic Gov. John Carney are far from aligned. But on at least one point they appear to have common ground. Both have proposed budgets that leave funding for homelessness in question.

Trump has proposed $6 billion in cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the federal agency through which Delaware receives most of its funding for low-income and homeless people – $10 million in 2016.

For his part, Carney has proposed an 11 percent cut, about $5.2 million, to Grant-In-Aid, the state program that offers much-needed funding for nonprofits that help homeless people.

Housing Alliance Delaware Associate Director Rachel Beatty said the biggest problem is that there’s no way to know what’s coming. A lot of questions remain to be answered, she said. The alliance was created when the Homeless Planning Council of Delaware and the Delaware Housing Coalition merged in late 2016.

Fortunately, if it’s possible to say that, for homeless people of the Cape Region, the primary source of funding for initiatives addressing homelessness – the Lewes-Rehoboth Association of Churches – is not going anywhere anytime soon.

“We’re blessed to have the support of more than 20 of the area’s churches,” said Community Resource Center Vice Chair Bennett Connelly. “We recently had a retreat with the churches and they reaffirmed their 100 percent support of the center.”

The Community Resource Center, founded in 2011 and originally housed in the building now used for the Immanuel Shelter, has been in its Oyster House Road home since 2012. The building is owned by LRAC, and the center is primarily funded through the association and the generous donations of local civic-minded groups.

Like many other states, Connelly said, Delaware is faced with fiscal challenges. He said it means the CRC will do its part forming even greater partnerships with the local community.

“It’s an opportunity for the community to come to the table,” he said, adding the center is already blessed to have the support of many members of the community, noting an elderly woman recently passed away and left $20,000 to the center. The money allows the center flexibility to address the immediate needs of families and individuals who might otherwise become homeless, he said.

LRAC President Dusty Pruitt said the organization funds the center to the tune of $20,000 a month, and there’s been an increase in funding to Immanuel Shelter, the region’s lone cold-weather shelter. “Those two things are at the forefront  of our minds,” she said. The shelter,  first opened in 2010, will close for the year April 22.

Pruitt said the biggest challenge moving forward is finding a place for year-round assistance in the Cape Region. In early 2016, the county denied a request to open a year-round shelter on Hebron Road in West Rehoboth after neighbors objected to its location near West Rehoboth Community Youth Center.

“Some day we hope to be able to provide that,” she said.

In addition to the funding from LRAC, the center announced in January that it had received a $50,000 Housing Development Fund Grant from Delaware State Housing Authority. Awarded for the second straight year, this grant enables eligible families facing eviction a one-time financial assistance gift.

Janet Idema, Immanuel Shelter president, said this year the shelter’s 225 volunteers provided 140 individuals with shelter, food and other types of support. She said 17 residents were able to find employment and 23 found permanent housing.

Idema said another success this year has been Facebook outreach. She said items like hot sauce, sugar and sleeping bag were posted, and items immediately began to appear.

“We have been blessed,” Idema said, noting the shelter is still seeking a permanent home and a van in order to provide services on a continual basis. She added that this summer the shelter hopes to develop relationships with health providers to provide support for guests’ health related concerns.

Idema said challenges remain. She said they’re still trying to protect and provide food, and temporary shelter; get recognition for the growing need; and funding for a permanent home.

At the state level, Beatty said, she’s happy to see Carney’s budget has not cut the grant. She said the $4 million spent by the state opens up approximately $80 million worth of federal funding toward loan financing and low-income housing options.

“It’s really an essential state resource,” she said.

Sheila Bravo, president of the Wilmington-based Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement, recognized the challenges of all nonprofits in general face during difficult budgetary times. She said her organization is mobilizing members to speak up for needed services.

“It’s not done yet,” she said of the budgetary process. “There is time for nonprofits to make the case of what will happen if certain programs are cut.”

Bravo said the alliance will be hosting a rally, Thursday, June 8, for nonprofits at Legislative Hall in Dover. It’s right near the end of the budget process and is an effective time to make the case, she said.

Point In Time Count

Every year a Point in Time Count is conducted by the Homeless Planning Council on a single night in January. In 2016, the night was Jan. 27 and 1,070 people were counted as experiencing homelessness in Delaware.

According to the council’s report, teams canvassed areas in Wilmington, Newark, Dover, Smyrna, Milford, Georgetown, Rehoboth Beach, Lewes and Seaford. These teams visited outdoor locations where people are known or believed to be sleeping and performed surveys with those they encountered.

These are some of what the count showed:

• Three-quarters of the individuals were at least 25 years old.

• 95 percent were sleeping in emergency or transitional housing shelters.

• A total of 74 people, 7 percent, were identified as chronically homeless.

• By county, 69 percent were located in New Castle, 20 percent in Kent and 11 percent in Sussex.

• By race, 58 percent were African American, while 38 percent were white.

• 62 percent of the population was male.

Editor’s Note: This story contains comments and updates from Immanuel Shelter President Janet Idema that did not make it into the April 21 print edition.