Members of New Hope Presbyterian Church in
Orange, Calif., delivered 70 blankets for the homeless preparing to eat supper and spend the night in the National Guard Armory in Fullerton on Wednesday evening. The pastor of the church, the Rev. Chineta Smith Goodjoin, and church member Shelby Brown watched in the armory parking lot as 5 adult homeless men and women gathered to wait for the armory to open. As the adult homeless waited to get inside of the National Guard Armory at Brookhurst and Valencia, volunteers brought in donated food and set up tables and later cots for them to sleep on.
- Mercy House has provided 25 years of service to community.
- New Hope Presbyterian Church stands behind local shelter.
- Those in need receives blankets to help stay warm.
The Mission
New Hope collected about 90 blankets and 70 were distributed on Wednesday. The others will be distributed at a later date. If you’d like to donate blankets, call the church at 714-288-9986. “It (the blankets) makes Christmas all that more meaningful,” said Goodjoin, as she and Brown took the blankets from the car inside the armory located at the corner of Brookhurst and Valencia. “More than that, the blankets set the tone for purposeful sharing and giving for the rest of the year,” said Goodjoin.
Founded 25 years ago, Mercy House’s mission is to be a leader in “ending homelessness by providing a unique system of dignified housing alternatives, programs and supportive services.” Since November 30, the Orange County Cold Weather Armory Emergency Shelter program, run by Mercy House, has been providing up to 400 beds per night for the homeless at the National Guard Armories in Fullerton and Santa Ana.
Services
David Thompson, site leader for this shelter, expected more homeless to arrive by the 6 p.m. meal time. He’s prepared to feed and sleep up to 137 homeless. In addition to a meal, the homeless will also receive a warm shower, and a safe place to sleep. Volunteers will pass out donations of warm clothing and service providers from Orange County will be on site to provide additional services.
The numbers
In a story published in The Orange County Register, county officials cautioned that the 2015 figure maybe low because it rained the day volunteers set out to count every homeless person they could find. Orange County has a particularly difficult problem with homeless children. According to the Orange County United Way, 32,000 children are homeless or housing insecure.
New Hope was doing its part to address a big problem in affluent Orange County.
A report by the Orange County Commission to End Homelessness estimates that 15,291 people in the county will experience homelessness in 2015, a 17 percent increase over 2013. The emergency shelter programs, open seven days a week excluding official guard training events, will end in March.
Keywords: shelter, church, mercy, homeless, hope
scottpastorick 