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Churches United is a
United Way Partner
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Welcome everyone. Our site is currently undergoing some construction here and there. We are adding the content as it is brought forth. Stay tuned for updates and any questions or comments feel free to contact Churches United at 218-444-1380 or you may contact us through our email at cunited@paulbunyan.net  |
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President
Pastor Vern Lathe
Vice President
Pastor Eric Hucke
Treasurer
Bruce Kaehne
Secretary
Beth Warrick
Jim Aylesworth
Barry Cervenka
Don Conner
Ginger Feiock
Jen Frederick
Clare Lyman
Fr. Bill Merhkens
Gary Nieuwsma
Kathy Paulson
Pastor Steve Thompson
Lowell Vaughn
Jodi Watson
Charles Wiggins
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CHURCHES UNITED VISITS UNITED MEHTODIST CHURCH
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Sarah is scheduled to speak at three churches this month. If you would like her to speak at your church or organization, please contact her at (218)444-1380
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Hello and welcome!
Services we offer - Emergency Financial Assistance - for “basic needs”
(shelter, food, utilities and emergency transportation)
- Referrals - to area agencies and businesses
- Advocacy - for individuals, children and families
- Mediating - between clients, landlords, property managers,
utility companies and other vendors
Who is Churches United?
Churches United is a collaboration of Bemidji area churches led by the Spirit of Christ, organized to serve and meet the needs of homeless, persistently poor, and impoverished individuals and families by providing individuals and family’s financial assistance and referrals in an empowering manner, while also seeking the causes of poverty with the goal to reach a solution to the current concerns.
All churches are welcome to join us in this ministry. If your congregation is interested, please contact Sarah at 218 444-1380 or cunited@paulbunyan.net.
Volunteers
Volunteers play a vital role in the ministry of Churches United. The volunteers offer spirituality, compassion and are committed to listening to the clients at a time when it is so needed.
Volunteers serve 4 hours (minimum) once a month. If you would be interested in becoming a volunteer, please call 444-1380.
How we are Supported
Member Churches pay $1.00 per member per year or the highest Sunday attendance (whichever is higher). So, if your church has 500 members the dues for one year would be $500. Member churches also provide one or more volunteer to serve this ministry in the Churches United office. Additional support has come from individuals and area businesses by providing services and/or items needed to them we say “Thank you!”
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Care Packages
Ask your church members, school groups, organizations or anyone you think might be interested in donating CARE PACKAGES to Churches United. We distribute the packages to the homeless and low-income clients we serve daily. WHAT TO DO: Purchase plastic shoe boxes at your local store (they can be found for as low as $1-$2) or large zip lock bags and fill them with needed items. Bring them to the Churches United office at St. Philip’s church office between 12 noon and 4pm. THINGS TO INCLUDE:
Toothpaste/Toothbrushes
Combs/Brushes
Soap
Feminine Items
Disposable razors
Shaving cream
Mouthwash
Small packages of Tissues
And any other items you think someone in need would like.
We ask that the packages include no medicines or pain relievers as we are unable to distribute them.
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Thank You
Thanks go to First Presbyterian Church, United Methodist Church and Bethany Free Church. They supplied our organization with numerous care packages to give to our clients. It is a pleasure to watch their faces when presented with such a gift. See below what you can do to help show we care.
Thank you to the First Lutheran Church for supplying us with baby quilts. We've been giving them to new mothers as a gift. You should see how their faces light up! |
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NATIONAL HUNGER AND HOMELESSNESS AWARENESS WEEK NOV 17-23
Churches United is one of the 8 organizations benefiting from the Hunger and Homelessness Dinner at the United Methodist Church at 9th & Beltrami Avenue on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 from 4:30-7:00pm.
The Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Committee began meeting in the late 1990's. Represeantatives from local service organizations wanted to address the issues of hunger and homelessness as they affect so many members of our community. Anuual evens have included a fundraising dinner/silent auction, proclamation by local government officials, educational presentations in local schools, and quilt display in the public library. HAHAW Members utilize the funds raised to provide quality direct services to those challenged by hunger and homelessness.
HAWHAW Members include:
Bemidji Community Food Shelf
Bi-County CAP
Churches United
Community Resource Connections
Evergreen House
Northwoods Habitat for Humanity
Northwoods Coalition for Family Safety
Bemidji School District 31 |
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HOUSE OF HOSPITALITY RECEIVES GRANT
Grant to help fund new shelter
Bethany Wesley Bemidji Pioneer
Published Wednesday, November 05, 2008
The Ours to Serve House of Hospitality actually got more than it requested.
The nonprofit applied for a $1 million grant from the Minnesota House Finance Agency, which fulfilled the request in the amount of $1,070,000.
The money will be used to construct a new homeless shelter that will have the capacity of serving six families, or up to 26 people, in need of shelter.
“This is the greatest project I have ever worked on,” said Rebecca Hoffman, the executive director of Ours to Serve. “I am thrilled to be part of it.”
Ours to Serve now has a homeless shelter located across from the Post Office on Irvine Avenue Northwest. It current is licensed for six beds.
The new money will aid in the construction of a new facility that will be located at the corner of Fifth Street and Mississippi. Ours to Serve reached an agreement with North Country Health Services to obtain four of six vacant parcels at the corner.
Plans call for a two-story building with 5,500 square feet on the bottom level and the construction of two staff apartments upstairs.
Jim Lucachick, a local architect, designed the building at no charge to the nonprofit. “(His design) was absolutely instrumental to getting the project off the ground,” Hoffman said, noting that Lucachick’s work was the single largest donation the nonprofit has received from a business. “He treated us like a paying customer … it was a huge gift.”
The $1 million grant was a necessity for Ours to Serve, but it will not cover the entire cost of the new structure. Hoffman said it needs to raise an additional $800,000. “Having that first $1 million in the bank is really important,” she said. “Having the financial base laid, it provides a greater foundation for others to jump on board.”
While she said the majority of the funds will need to come from foundations, some local agencies have already pledged their support. The Red Lake Nation housing authority was the first to contribute, offering $50,000 toward the new shelter.“That was definitely the spark that lit the fire,” Hoffman said.
The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe housing authority has offered the use of a construction crew, and White Earth Band of Ojibwe is considering a donation toward the project as well.
The shelter will provide shelter to homeless families, which may include single fathers and mothers, two-parent families, pregnant women and grandparents who are raising dependent children. It also shelters extended relatives, such as aunts, who may have lived with the family providing child care before the family became homeless.
The need for the shelter is apparent: 578 people, including 280 children, have been turned away in 2008, though October, due to a lack of space.
Through October, the shelter has offered 2,015 nights of shelter for 160 people.
In two decades, more than 4,000 people have received shelter at Ours to Serve.“Ultimately, our goal is to keep families as stable and safe as possible while they’re experiencing homelessness,” Hoffman said.
Specifically, the shelter aims to provide as comfortable a situation as possible for the children. They remain in the same schools, with the same teachers and friends, even through their period of homelessness, Hoffman explained.Our goal is to keep homeless children as stable as possible,” she said.
Hoffman credits the work of Rep. Frank Moe, DFL-Bemidji, for the grant.Moe worked with the Legislature to get the funding available through the HHFA for funding for emergency shelter in addition to supportive housing.
Hoffman explained that Beltrami County, with a higher-than-average rate of child poverty, teen pregnancy rates and high school dropouts, needs emergency shelter.“It creates a situation where we have a large number of homeless people,” she said. “Frank Moe really helped frame that conversation at the state level.”
The Bemidji City Council also agreed to pay the building permit fees and sewer and water access charges for the new shelter as it increased Ours to Serve’s chances at getting the $1 million grant.“That was an important demonstration of the community support for this project,” Hoffman said.Hoffman noted that it is always difficult to find funding sources for operating the shelter.
Thus, the new facility is planned to be as “green” as possible to save money on heating costs.“We had to make the facility as low-cost as possible to operate as we can,” she said. “There hasn’t been a stone unturned.”
Design elements include:-- An emphasis on family space over community gathering space as human heat will naturally warm up small areas, and the shelter will not need to heat or cool large gathering spaces as often.-- Solar paneling.-- Ground sources for heating and cooling.-- Walls will be super insulated with blown-in insulation. -- Utilization of quality windows and doors. -- Utilization of low-use water fixtures and dual-flushing toilets.“It’s going to as green as possible, which is something I’ve extremely happy and excited about,” Hoffman said.
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