Journey of Faith stepped up today to help the #Homeless crisis in the #SouthBay - here's how you can too.
June 24, 2018
Today I witnessed the most beautiful sight at my Torrance Journey of Faith campus I had to write about it.
Months ago, you may remember I wrote a blog about the lack of homeless resources offered through Journey of Faith church and the City of Manhattan Beach. I wrote the deacons at the church and the city council member I knew to challenge them to do more.
Not sure if the City of Manhattan Beach has done anything with the homeless resource information I gave because I don't see it on their city website, but perhaps I'm not looking in the right spot?:) I hope they take what Journey of Faith is doing and consider doing more because when I visit the library there, I see homeless people around the city more and more.
Here's what an article in the LA Times entitled Los Angeles’ homelessness crisis is a national disgrace had to say about the homeless demographic:
"Contrary to popular belief, the homeless in Los Angeles are not mostly mentally ill or drug addicted, raving or matted-haired or frightening — although a sizable minority meet some of those descriptions. They are not mostly people who drifted in from other states in search of a comfy climate in which to sponge off of others; the overwhelming majority have lived in the region for years. Today, a greater and greater proportion of people living on the streets are there because of bad luck or a series of mistakes, or because the economy forgot them — they lost a job or were evicted or fled an abusive marriage just as the housing market was growing increasingly unforgiving.
It will surprise no one to learn that it is the most vulnerable among us who usually end up without a place to live. According to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, more than 5,000 of the county’s 58,000 homeless people are children and more than 4,000 are elderly. About one-third are mentally ill. Some 40% are African American. Also heavily represented: Veterans. The disabled. Young people from the county’s overwhelmed juvenile justice system and its foster care programs. Men and women just released from jail, without the tools or skills needed for reentering society. Patients released from public hospitals — often with untreated cancers, infections, heart disease or diabetes. Victims of domestic violence."
That's why, when I saw that Journey of Faith had prepared an amazing gift for the homeless we packed after service today, it brought me to tears to see Love in Action. Sometimes you don't think what you have to say matters to anyone and maybe I had nothing to do with this new direction, but I like to think I made a small difference.
Your donation of money, time or resources will go a long way to helping people get back on their feet. Some of the organizations listed above include:
"The programs we offer clients are funded by a mix of government and community support. Without your help, we couldn’t offer programs such as The Children’s Center, the Associated Learning & Living transitional housing program, and others. Please consider a gift today to help eliminate homelessness and poverty in the South Bay."
Click Here to donate cash.
- $60,000 pays for one year of case management to house 25 families
- $6,000 pays for childcare for one child for a year
- $1,000 pays for one week’s food supply at the Pantry
- $500 pays for a month of educational materials for the Children’s Center
- $100 covers the cost of Internet connection for the job-search computer lab
- $50 pays for lunch for the school-age children for one day of summer day camp
- $25 pays for one evening of “Movie Night” for our senior clients
Tax ID: Harbor Interfaith Services, Inc., is a 501.c.3, tax exempt, corporation. Your gifts are tax deductible. Our Federal Tax ID number is 33-0031099.
1736 Family Crisis Center relies exclusively on donations and grants to financially support our programs. The Center is a private nonprofit corporation with IRS 501(c)(3) and California tax exempt status. Donations are fully tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
Donate by Cash, Check or Money Order
Stock and Estate Planning Donations
Family Promise is a community-based approach, engaging both
the local community, as well as houses of faith in the effort to combat family homelessness. Guests in our program receive a full complement of resources, support, and services as they work toward their own stability and self-reliance.
Doors of Hope/Beacon Light Shelter
We seek to identify the extreme challenges of homeless women and provide support to help them transition from despair to spiritual wholeness.
There are very few female-focused shelters in Los Angeles, and this one is located in Wilmington. They always need clothes, food, and financial support. They are under the umbrella of Beacon Light Shelter and offer a warm dinner nightly to those in need and housing for up to a week.
And that's your Sunday message for today. God is love. He loves those who are struggling. There is hope. There is a huge need. Please participate in any way you can.
God bless.
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