Nat’l Salvation Army Week, Part VI: Providing shelter
National Salvation Army Week is May 9–15. To celebrate, The Salvation Army Northern Division will publish a special story every day of the event. Each story will highlight a topic or service that illustrates how The Salvation Army is Doing the Most Good® in Minnesota and North Dakota.
On any given night, The Salvation Army houses about 1,050 people across Minnesota and North Dakota. We operate 50 housing facilities that provide three main types of housing services – emergency, transitional, and permanent-supportive.
Almost half of the 1,050 people sleep at our Harbor Light Shelter in Minneapolis (pictured above), which is Minnesota’s largest homeless outreach facility. The facility also houses about half of Hennepin County’s homeless population.
Beyond Harbor Light, we operate several other emergency housing facilities. These programs are a godsend to people like Olu Waseye (pictured) of Mankato, Minn. Last November, the 64-year-old disabled man came to our men’s seasonal shelter at the Mankato Salvation Army. He had been living out of his car for two months.
“Compared to sleeping in my car, the Salvation Army shelter is luxurious,” said Waseye, who has since secured permanent housing. “I thank God for The Salvation Army.”
Others, such as Tanya Barkhausen (pictured) and her three kids, rely on The Salvation Army for permanent housing. Five years ago, they too lived out of a car. Barkhausen had reached a low point while battling three debilitating afflictions: 1. Cancer. 2. Mental health issues. 3. A serious back injury.
“It was our first time being homeless,” said Barkhausen, who had worked her entire life as a certified nursing assistant. “It was awful scary for all of us.”
Thankfully, the family was able to move into a safe and secure townhome through The Salvation Army’s partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing. The family continues to live in the townhome and can stay for as long as necessary while receiving Salvation Army case management services.
Additionally, The Salvation Army operates several large-scale permanent housing facilities, including Booth Manor in Minneapolis, a 21-story high rise for senior citizens.
Finally, The Salvation Army operates a number of facilities that provide temporary housing for people and families who need an extended period of time to get on their feet.
These housing programs help people such as Donald Kane (pictured), 51, who lives in South Minneapolis at The Salvation Army’s 10-unit housing facility for veterans. The retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran, sober for four years, is no longer physically able to continue his past careers in flooring and pipefitting.
“I can’t do the work I love anymore,” he said. “What am I going to do the rest of my life?”
Thankfully, Kane can stay at the housing facility for up two years as he searches for an answer to that question, all while receiving support from Salvation Army case managers.
Safe and sound
The stories below provide more examples of how your donations to The Salvation Army provide safe and secure housing to people and families who are homeless or are in danger of becoming so.
Serving way up north: In Northern Minnesota, where few shelters exist, The Salvation Army helps hundreds of homeless by providing hotel vouchers for those in need of emergency shelter. Learn more through this story about a homeless man who tried walking from Grand Rapids to Minneapolis – a 200-mile trek – in subzero temperatures.
North Dakota housing crunch: In addition to housing people in Salvation Army facilities, we also help people keep the homes they already have. Learn how we have been assisting during uncertain financial times in Minot, N.D.
“Key” to a comeback: For Brett Bruvold, the most demoralizing aspect of being homeless in St. Cloud, Minn. wasn’t his lack of food or housing. It was his lack of keys.
God called, she answered: Meet Captain Katherine Clausell, the woman in charge of Minnesota’s largest homeless outreach facility – The Salvation Army Harbor Light Shelter.
Please join us during National Salvation Army Week by volunteering or making a donation to support your local community.