Viewpoints: Homeless families need new roadmap to get back on track Share

By Michele Steeb and Chet Hewitt
Special to The Bee
Published: Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012 | Page 11A

One of the most alarming trends of this historic economic downturn is the rapidly increasing number of families, largely mothers with children, experiencing homelessness. Read more

Editorial: Don't forget homeless women and children

By Michele Steeb and Chet Hewitt
Special to The Bee
Published: Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012 | Page 11A

A great deal of media attention as well as public and private support has been focused this winter on the 200 or so homeless people who camp illegally on the American River, and appropriately so. Read more

"Some" Good News Over the Holidays...

By Michele Steeb, CEO

The good news is that both locally and nationally, according to the 2011 Homeless Street Counts, the numbers of single men and single women who experience homelessness are down.

The bad news is that the numbers of mothers with children who experience homelessness are on a rapid rise, both nationally and locally. At St. John's, we are now turning away over 300 women and children each day... up from 150 each day last year. With 28% of Sacramento County residents receiving aid through the County's Department of Human Assistance, our community is facing an epidemic. We are only as strong as our weakest link, and the number of weakest links is quickly expanding.

When a family falls into homelessness, we need to give them a hand-up. We simply cannot have women and their children sleeping on our streets. At the same time, we need to provide them with a roadmap and the tools to become self-sustaining to exit the system as quickly as possible… which is not happening through the system today. Instead, the system takes them in and does little, if anything, to encourage an exit.

Just looking through the lens of St. John's over the last four years, we have served over 2,200 mothers and over 2,000 children. Of these 2,200 mothers, we can count less than 50 who may not be capable of sustaining their families due to conditions that cannot be changed in their lives. Approximately 75 of the remaining 2,150 are working and sustaining their families independently. The remaining 2,075 mothers continue to rely on the system and have little incentive to exit it.

We know these mothers. We know their potential. We know they are capable of more. Unfortunately, our system expects so little of them that they expect that little of themselves. They will remain dependent until the expectations are changed and until the system gives them the roadmap, the encouragement and the tools to become self- sustaining. This problem is not as overwhelming as it may seem. In the last two years, St. John's has developed a continuum that begins with temporary shelter and continues through the development of foundational skills and employment-training. The result - mothers are able to sustain their families.

Consider Shalonda, a mother of five, who came into our shelter in early 2010 and is now the lead cashier at the Crocker Cafe. Through St. John's continuum, she has become an independent provider of her family. Consider Amanda, a mother of three who entered our shelter in 2009. She is in her second year of employment at Shriners and is an independent provider for her family. Consider the social and financial impact of just these two families and their generations of future children building independent lives. Through St. John's continuum, they accessed the links to success from which they were disconnected from before.

Having faced significant cuts in government funding this year, and with community donations down, we need your support to continue this very important work, helping formerly homeless women and children become self-sustaining. The need is great, and moreover, it's a blessing that will return back to you many times over.

We wish you and your family a wonderful holiday season...

It's All Us...

By Michele Steeb

A friend and I were at the gym a couple of weeks ago. Gym protocol states that when you have finished with your weights, you need to put them back where they belong. Most people follow that protocol... a few do not... We finished our set of exercises and returned our weights to the rack. I saw a weight in the middle of the floor. I asked, "Is that from us?" To which he replied, "No, it's someone else's." Something became very clear to me in that moment... It's all us. We picked up the weight and put it back where it belongs.

We are a community. We are all connected. When one of us achieves, the community gains. When one of us is hurting, the community suffers. Said in another way, we are only as strong as the weakest among us.

Our failure to help those who are suffering is a failure to elevate ourselves, both in the spiritual sense and in the practical sense. The direct costs and the opportunity costs to keep homeless women and their children in the system are enormous. When we help these families help themselves they are able to begin to realize their great potential. They begin to ween themselves from the system. They become positive role models and inspiration for others.

The women and children St. John's serves are homeless; they are not helpless! Consider Melanie, a mother of two, who after completing St. John's Shelter Program and Plates training program, is now in a $40,000 a year Customer Management role with a building products company. Consider Shalonda, a mother of four, who also completed St. John's Shelter Program and Plates training program, now the lead cashier at the brand new Crocker Cafe. Consider Carmen, a mother of two, who is now gainfully employed at Good Eats.

St. John's makes a difference in the lives of homeless women with children! Each time one of these weaker links is strengthened, every member of our community becomes stronger and benefits. Our community becomes stronger. This is possible because of YOU and your investment in US. Thank you

Congresswoman Matsui Recognizes Plates Partner, Bobbin Mulvaney, as her Point of Light

The Points of Light Institute embraces service and civic engagement as fundamental to a purposeful life and essential to a healthy world. They have the history, the scale and reach, the leadership and the strategy to mobilize millions of people to tackle concrete, significant challenges.

Each year they recognize an individual who embodies these traits and invite others to join them in identifying other Points of Light around the nation.

We are thrilled that Congresswoman Matsui selected Bobbin Mulvaney as her Point of Light. Bobbin, along with her husband Patrick, daughter Sarah and the entire Mulvaneys B&L/Culinary Specialists/Crocker Cafe team have been instrumental in the start up and ongoing efforts of Plates Cafe, a program of St John's Shelter for Women & Children.

The Congresswoman spotlighted Bobbin's involvement at Plates, and includes a success story of one of our Graduates, Amy McMahan. The video can be viewed here

For more information on Plates: www.eatatplates.com

For more information on the Points of Light Institute: www.pointsoflight.org

Seeing Dreams Come True

By Michele Steeb, Executive Director

There's nothing more satisfying than seeing dreams come true. For Amy, a mother of three and former homeowner who lost everything after her husband passed away unexpectedly, the dream began with getting sober. Now, she is fulfilling her lifelong dream... training to become a Chef. For Melanie, the dream began with having a roof over her head. Now, after completing her training program at Plates, she has a $40,000/year job in customer management for a building products company. For most of us, dreams are big and robust... for others it's as simple as hope for shelter, food and the ability to provide for their family.

St. John's is home to women and children who are trying to break the bonds of pain and suffering. Some have been abused. Some have lost their footing in this difficult economy. Some have made bad choices by letting drugs, alcohol and/or crime run their lives. However, these families all have one thing in common...they are homeless, but they are far from helpless. St. John's gives them the tools that they need to recover, skills, love and support that most of us take for granted. From day one, we show them the door to a future filled with hope. They begin to raise the expectations they have of themselves.

With the opening of Plates, St. John's Caf' and Catering company, we are now able to start these women on a path to sustaining their families... developing the skills, the work ethic, the references and the exposure both to secure employment and to maintain it. With one in three residents of Sacramento County extracting support from the County's Department of Human Assistance, nothing could be more important than to help these families become independent.

When families arrive at St. John's, they feel hopeless. We take them from misery to a place where they learn to take care of themselves and their children, discover how to give back to the community, and see a path to independence. It's a true transformation. They would say they have experienced a miracle.

It starts with hope. It ends with skills to be a loving family and a contributing part of our community. St. John's is very much a salvation to those who are lost in our society. We bring them back. It sounds bold, but the stories told by the women and children at St. John's are testimony to our work, our program and our success.

This would not be possible without your support. We continue to turn away over 200 women and children every day, and the need is so great. Moreover, it's a blessing that will return back to you many times over.

Happy Holidays to you and yours!