Project Hope for the Homeless is pleased to announce the receipt of $123,850 in grant funding to help expand services and respond to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The adult shelter is open an additional 6 hours during the week allowing guests to stay from 1 p.m. to 7 a.m. and open an additional 12 hours each day on the weekends to allow guests to stay 24 hours. During the week, adult guests can go to the Salvation Army from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Families Moving Forward program, operating in a separate wing of the 25 Freedom Road facility, is open 24 hours per day for families with children after operational hours were expanded by 6 hours during weekdays and 12 hours on weekends.
Because of CDC guidelines being followed that include social distancing, there is a limit of 30 beds at the shelter. So an overflow of up to 20 guests are being served offsite through short-term hotel stays.
This response was made possible with the financial support of the community and these caring grantors:
Avery Dennison Foundation: $3,000
Cleveland Foundation – Lake-Geauga Fund: $22,000
COHHIO (Coalition of Housing & Homelessness in Ohio): $10,000
Emergency Shelter Fund (ODSA) – Region 5: $24,150
Greater Cleveland Covid-19 Response Fund: $22,00
Lake County Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board in partnership with Lifeline, our community action agency: $22,000
The Lubrizol Foundation: $10,000
United Way Emergency Relief Fund: $10,700
In addition, the Mentor Rotary Club has provided 1,000 masks and has other personal protection equipment should Project Hope for the Homeless require it. The Lake County Job and Family Services Department also supplied disposable thermometers for daily use.
“I believe we are extremely blessed in Lake County to have such exceptional partners,” said Judy Burr, Project Hope for the Homeless executive director. “And I agree with one of the children in the shelter who said, ‘This is a great place because of all the interesting things people are trying to do to help us’. I could not say it better myself.”
Project Hope for the Homeless also continues to shelter three seniors 24 hours per day at our offsite Hope House.
As an organization, Project Hope for the Homeless follows CDC guidelines including increased procedures for disinfecting; reminding guests, staff and volunteers to wash hands continually; along with recently conducting a deep cleaning of the facility by a vendor.
Please visit our website www.projecthopeforthehomeless.org and our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/projecthopeforthehomeless for updates as this situation evolves.