FHCHI - general brochure, Jan 2016 revision.pdfProviding safe shelter
for the homeless and assistance
in improving their lives.
Causes of
Homelessness
While there are many reasons why a person may
become homeless, the most common include:
• Job loss
• Eviction
• Domestic issues
• The break-up of a relationship
• Lack of affordable housing
• Substance abuse
• Physical and mental health issues
Whatever the cause, the difficulty of returning to a
normal life seems insurmountable.
Scope of the Problem
Recent statistics on homelessness:
People
in Families Individuals
National
(2014)216,261 362,163
Massachusetts
(2014)14,449 6,788
Northampton
(2015)22 184
www.hamphomeless.org
Take Action
Volunteer
Hundreds of volunteers pitch in each year to help the
homeless in our community. Here are some ways you
can get involved.
• Cook a meal
• Assist overnight staff
• Join a cleaning crew
• Help with fundraising
• And a variety of other ways
Contact Rick Hart at 586-5787, or email us through
our website at www.hamphomeless.org .
Donate
Each year, the Friends need to raise $40,000 for the
winter shelter operating costs. After operating costs
are met, additional funds are used to support perma-
nent housing for the chronically homeless. Donate
directly through our website or send a check to:
“Friends of the Homeless”
P.O. Box 60398
Florence, MA 01062
www.hamphomeless.org
Feed the Frog
A minimum of $500 is needed each month to provide
free meals to the hungry. Contributions may be placed
into the Happy Frog in downtown Northampton.
Support affordable housing
Become involved in advocacy efforts to help continue
to find solutions to homelessness. Attend hearings to
show your support.
Our Mission
To provide financial and volunteer support for the
Hampshire County Interfaith Winter Shelter for
homeless individuals and its associated programs. Our
core goal is to help homeless people find a better life.
About the Friends
Friends of Hampshire County Homeless Individuals
is a non-profit organization, formally incorporated in
2000. The work of these passionate volunteers began
years before, however, with their commitment to
assisting the homeless of Hampshire County
community. For years, citizens of this area have
focused their time and attention on improving the
lives of individuals who are homeless and on finding
solutions to the problems and issues faced by homeless
individuals.
History
1994-1997. The Mayor reaches out to the interfaith
community for help with the winter homeless issue.
Seven churches rotate a shelter during the six winter
months
1997-1999. A single site is identified on Hawley Street,
with 14 beds made available
1999-2002. 16 beds are established at the former Fire
Station
2000. Friends of the Hampshire County Homeless
Individuals is incorporated
2002. A permanent winter shelter site is established at
43 Center Street with 20 beds
2006. An annex in Easthampton opens with six beds
2008. Established Yvonne’s House, a permanent home
for the chronically homeless.
2011. Gandara/Friends House opens, the second
permanent housing site for chronically homeless.
Services
Shelter. The Interfaith Winter Shelter, located at 43
Center Street in Northampton, and its annex in
Easthampton, are emergency overflow shelters for
homeless adults, serving a total of 26 people nightly.
The shelters offer warm beds and hot meals from
November through April every year. The Friends
provide volunteer assistance preparing and serving
meals, coordinating overnight volunteers, cleaning,
supply shopping, and also support the shelter
financially. An average of 200 homeless individuals
utilize the shelter and its services annually. Our part-
ner, ServiceNet, provides on-site resource informa-
tion, case management, and housing search services
weekday mornings. In the 2014-15 shelter season, 205
guests stayed at the Interfaith Shelter and the East-
hampton Annex, with an average stay of 22 days.
Prescription Assistance. Believing that no one should
have to make a choice between having enough to eat
and medication, the Friends set aside funds to help
with prescription co-payments and to bridge the gap
while waiting for state insurance.
Funding for Self-Sufficiency. The Friends provide
funding to assist homeless individuals with the upfront
costs associated with obtaining an apartment. These
costs often prevent individuals from being able to
move out of homelessness into their own apartment.
Funds are allocated annually to assist with first, last,
and security deposits for those individuals who qualify.
In 2015, 19 people were enabled to move from home-
lessness into an apartment with these funds.
Winter Boot Program. The Friends give vouchers to
homeless individuals to purchase a warm pair of
boots at Deals & Steals in Northampton. In 2015,
22 individuals were given boot vouchers.
Happy Frog
Feed the frog, feed the
hungry!! A frog sculpture,
initiated by the Friends, is located on the corner of
Center and Main Streets in downtown Northampton.
Donations can be made through a slot in the base of
the Frog to support the free lunches for the hungry
provided by the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton soup kitchen
two days a week. Gifts from Happy Frog helped pay
for 6,246 lunches in 2015 alone.
Permanent Solutions
Yvonne’s House and
Gandara-Friends House
The Friends are committed to developing permanent
solutions to end homelessness by increasing the
quantity of affordable housing available to home-
less individuals in the City of Northampton. Over
the past five years, the organization has purchased
and readied two duplexes with a capacity to house 6
individuals each, in an apartment sharing arrange-
ment. Each house was gifted to a partnering human
service agency who assumes responsibility for tenant
selection and program operations of these permanent
supportive housing units. The Friends use surplus
funds to leverage support from the Northampton
Community Preservation Committee, foundations
and state sources.
Yvonne’s House and Gandara-Friends House