SEARCY — Homelessness and hunger are everywhere, and no one is immune to either. The people of White County are no exception.
Each year, just before Thanksgiving, the National Coalition for the Homeless and the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness cosponsor National Hunger and Homeless Awareness Week, which is Nov. 11-17.
In recognition of the week, Jacob’s Place Homeless Mission, a homeless shelter for families, is asking White County churches to hold a “For Me” Potluck fundraiser on Nov. 11. The fundraiser is the idea of Jacob’s Place board member Mat Faulkner.
“When I first read about homelessness in White County, I blew it off thinking we may have a vagrant or two, but homeless people — No way!” said Mark Carson, board vice president of Jacob’s Place. “Then I saw the statistics. In January 2007, an actual count survey recorded 341 persons considered homeless. Of these, 87 were children, under age 18. Seventy-nine of the adults on record had children with them. Arkansas, as a whole, currently ranks third in the nation in child homelessness.”
The For Me Potluck fundraiser’s name was taken from Matthew 25:40, which says “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
Faulkner said a suggested donation is $12 per potluck attendee, which calculates to $1 a month for a year.
“We understand that not all can afford this and encourage everyone to participate and enjoy the fellowship anyway,” he said. “Some may choose to just take a love offering and send it to Jacob’s Place. We encourage that as well.”
The goal of the “For Me” Potluck is to raise $73,000, which is the operating expense of Jacob’s Place for one year.
“I have been serving on the board of Jacob’s Place for one year now, and I have involved my team at Think Advertising in the PR efforts as a donation of our services to help this wonderful mission,” Faulkner said. “The “For Me” Potluck idea is a culmination of ideas from me and my staff. We held a brainstorm session on the best way to spread awareness of this wonderful resource in White County, while sharing the responsibility of raising funds to provide Jacob’s Place with operational capital needed to keep the doors open and services available.
“Jacob’s Place began as an effort of the Ministerial Alliance in White County, a group of many denominations coming together to work together toward common goals. Because this is a Christian-based nonprofit, we felt a church potluck was an event most churches are used to holding, and it would be easy to implement countywide.”
Jacob’s Place Homeless Mission sits on the corner of Locust and Market streets in downtown Searcy. The mission is a refuge for homeless families with children. Opening its doors for its first family in March 2008, Jacob’s Place has served more than 110 families from those who lost a job that once made a big salary to those who have had one parent die or become disabled. With an accident or a job loss, it could sometimes mean a matter of just weeks before the family faces either hunger or homelessness, or both.
“We wish that we were able to accommodate single men and women or even married couples without children,” Carson said. “As of now, we just don’t have the facilities, funds and manpower to do so.”
According to Jacob’s Place’s website, many families who are homeless have at least one parent who is working full time, but they are living paycheck-to-paycheck, barely making ends meet, until an unexpected medical bill, car accident or layoff makes them unable to pay the rent. They find themselves getting further and further behind on their bills and pretty soon, they don’t know where they’ll put their children to bed or from where their next meal will come.
According to the website, Jacob’s Place isn’t a rescue mission, where people line up for a bunk each night. Instead, three to four families may be housed in the shelter for as long as needed until they are able to get back on their feet. Families who stay more than two weeks must enter a program designed to help them improve job and life skills, budget their finances and set goals of successful independence, the website said.
“I think the key to alleviating homelessness includes several factors: education, parenting skills, knowing how to budget, developing a good work ethic and knowing how to respect others despite differences of opinion,” Carson said. “We need to learn to depend on friends, family and community and stop looking to government programs every time the going gets rough. The first three should be forever. Government assistance is a temporary fix.”
White County Judge Michael Lincoln and Searcy Mayor David Morris both made proclamations declaring Nov. 11-17 as Homelessness and Hunger awareness week in White County.
For more information on the homeless mission, visit the Jacob’s Place website at www.jacobsplace.org. For more information on the “For Me” Potluck, visit www.formepotluck.com.
Staff writer Jeanni Brosius can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or jbrosius@arkansasonline.com