Good Works Indiana Stop Tour #22: Center for the Homeless of South Bend, Indiana

My next stop was the Center for the Homeless , located in the former Gilbert's Department store in South Bend Indiana was opened in December of 1988. Their good works on behalf of the homeless started when the Dean of the Law School of Notre Dame made an offer on the building. Still short of the necessary funds to make a go of it, the Dean approached newly appointed president Fr. Monk Malloy with a request for assistance. From that point on Notre Dame, the City of South Bend, Junior League and the United Religious Community would play a crucial role in the growth of the Center. Steve Camilleri and Jacqueline Kronk suggested that we start our tour outside the facility. Of course after my two hour drive I was really looking forward to stretching my legs so. Now this is where it gets weird. We weren't outside for a good 30 seconds when a young man from across the street yells "Hey Steve!" giving a raised arm street salute. Steve waves back and continues his description of the building's history. Another minutes passes and a local news television van drives by with and gave a quick "beep, beep" and brake tap "hello" as it continued north on South Michigan Street. Again Steve and Jacqueline returned the greeting.

With a quizzical look I turned to my host, and half jokingly commented "Steve...Come on dude is this a setup?" gesturing in the direction of the van and young man slowly shrinking in the distance. "I mean are you guys really this popular?"

"Honest Ike, this wasn't staged." Steve replied clearly embarrassed with the sudden rash of attention.

Of course I didn't know it at the time but this was just the beginning. As we walked toward the community garden next door more FOS (friends of Steve) appeared out of nowhere. Two young men (and of course Steve knew them by name) stopped briefly to talk to us. Despite being given a recent timeout from the facility, they both thanked Steve and Jacqueline for all they had done for them. Well let me tell you folks after listening to them share their experiences with the Center I gave up my "gotcha' " quest. The neighborhood residents were really sincere in their display of affection. Epiphany moment. I am in the presence of greatness.

When I walked through the door it was unlike any homeless shelter I'd ever seen. With a spacious and welcoming designed lobby it reminded me of a bustling hospital waiting room. Staffers buzzing here and there with their "guests" with a caring yet professional air about them. In one section guests were busying themselves on what appeared to be working on what appeared to be a massive envelope stuffing process. In another a mom and kids where waiting for processing. We call our clients as 'guests' because we want them to understand that this is not a long-term stay for them. We want to provide them with formula that is designed to break the cycle of homelessness for good." Steve explained.

As I walked through the maze of rooms and programming space I discovered that the Center for the Homeless is more than just a homeless shelter but rather an on-site structured, step-by step process to achieve and maintain self-sufficiency. Since its opening in December 1988, the Center has provided more than 700,000 safe nights and over 1.5 million meals to over 25, 000 men, women and children. To maintain such a revolutionary program, partnerships with every sector of the community are critical to their ongoing success. Having an endorsement by the US Department of Housing and Urban Department only adds to the weight to the argument that this agency has had a dramatic impact on its community. With a mission to break the cycle of homelessness; bring together disparate groups so that each can discover the work, dignity and potential of the other and to pioneer a service model worthy of replication the leadership and staff work to bring a focused and concerted effort to change the lives of their guests.

The Center for the Homeless funding mix is 80% community support (now that's community buy-in!)15% federal funding and 5% from private foundations. With that support the Center provides housing, meals, educational and job training programs to men, women, and children in the community. Guests needing housing are admitted on a first come first serve basis.

Individual success happens on a daily basis. For instance, Kathy and Arielle mother and daughter (above) are a walking testament. Kathy is currently attending Ivy Tech and her daughter just completed her GED course. And it is duly noted when a guest moves into permanent housing, obtains a GED or gets a job that makes a living wage we consider them successful. Like most agencies that deal with the homeless population challenges come in the form of sustaining funding streams, increased applicants because of local, state and national economic crises, and cyclical poverty issues. Undaunted the Center is embarking on a new phase in programming that will compensate for recent trends in guest populations and socio-economic patterns. One of the unique programs I discovered during my tour was the CFH Landscape Services. This business arm of the agency is is ran supervised Terry Morelock (orange shirt) an expert in landscaping and a man who has found his calling. Launched in 1998, this business provides competitive commercial landscape services to businesses in the Michiana area. Whoa! A homeless center that employs the homeless...How radical is that?!

I asked Ms. Kronk what advice she would give to others operating or considering providing services for the homeless. "Listen to your guests." she replied. "Find out who they are and create programming that meets their needs."

Okay, okay...pluck the crow and make it medium rare. I'm convinced that all that happened during that surreal period at the beginning of my interview was not a cleverly designed scheme to impress me. In fact it was grassroots dividends from a program that runs well and like a good neighborhood it's a there when you need them most. Interestingly the motto Gilbert's Department Store motto is still rings true for the new occupants... "One man tells another..." and in this case its telling others about the hundreds of individual transformations occurring under in this facility. Thank you Steve and Jacqueline, you provided me with a great story of a very robust and unique community partnership program! And of course keep up the Good Work!