November 25, 2024, Winter Appeal
What a year it’s been. We’ve felt the effects of the end of the state motel program, another flood, rising numbers of unsheltered individuals, and an extreme shortage of affordable housing.
As hardships and setbacks impede our work, your support is vital in helping us care for our neighbors in need. If you have already given, thank you for investing in our work!
Operating a shelter network is relentlessly challenging. The emotional toll on our staff and guests is real.
I envision the stress on Osa’s face, as they help a confused and frightened person relocate their tent and belongings, once again, because camping isn’t allowed where they are—or anywhere else in this area.
I hear the frustration in Denise’s voice when she must tell a desperate person on the other end of the phone that there are no beds available in our shelters.
I can feel the sadness within Carolyn as she helps an older, disabled motel guest pack up because their 80 allowable days in the motel have ended, knowing that they are physically incapable of camping, and are unlikely to survive outside.
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and discouraged, but as one Good Sam supporter shared, “With so much suffering in the world, I am countering my feelings of helplessness by offering tangible support to a tragedy closest to home.”
I believe that our community has the power to make a difference—to ease the burden of our unsheltered neighbors and help reduce their trauma and suffering. Together, we are saving lives.
Today, we need you—our incredible supporters—to give generously to help our neighbors who need us now more than ever.