UMC Blog

The following is reprinted from the Trinity Presbyterian Church newsletter. Tricia Sistrunk lives in Charlotte with her husband and three children. She is a stay-at-home mom, attorney, blogger for thelunchproject.org, and RITI Coordinator at Trinity.

On March 20, 2013, we concluded another successful season of Room In The Inn (RITI) here at Trinity.  Successful in the sense that we were able to provide food and shelter for 138 men, women, and children during the twelve nights we hosted. However, my idea of true success would mean we no longer have a need for the RITI program. We would no longer need the 60 or 70 volunteers it takes to run RITI. We would no longer need the closet at the back of our Fellowship Hall filled with mattresses, pillows, sheets, towels, toiletries, shirts, underwear, socks, hats, and gloves. We would no longer need the small shower down the hall used by our homeless guests to clean up after a hard day. Alas, we are not there yet.

According to Urban Ministry Center's 2013 count, there are approximately 2418 homeless people in Mecklenburg County, of which 738 are children. In fact, there was a disheartening 61% increase in the number of homeless families served by RITI this year.

The RITI program was started by the Urban Ministry Center in 1996 with two goals in mind. The first, to provide a warm, safe and dry place for Mecklenburg county's homeless population during our coldest months – December through March. Approximately 130 area churches and colleges participate in the RITI program by taking in twelve to fourteen homeless people on their assigned evening. There are usually ten to fifteen host sites on any given night.

The second goal of the RITI program is to provide a personal relationship with homeless people and a deeper understanding of the issue of homelessness. When most people hear the word homeless, the image that often comes to mind is of “street homelessness.” There are, of course, many chronically homeless people here in Mecklenburg County and across the country who, often due to mental or physical disabilities and/or addiction, are unable to maintain employment, pay their bills, and keep supportive social relationships.

However, the more prevalent face of homelessness is the working poor and their families. The lack of affordable housing combined with the lack of jobs has led to more and more families living in their cars, hotel rooms, and in shelters.

I have personally experienced a little bit of everything during my six years of being involved with RITI. There have certainly been mentally ill guests, all of whom have left an indelible impression on me. They are truly the “least of these” among us and I can’t help but wonder and worry about them during April through November when there is no RITI to keep them off the streets.

This season I also met a young married couple expecting twins in June. Like a nervous parent, I asked them if they had any housing prospects. They said they were working on it and hopefully they would be in an apartment by June. I can only pray that I won’t see them again next season with their babies in tow.

There was Lisa who was concerned when the hot water in our RITI shower ran out. Lisa had a job interview the next morning. She was excited about the possibility of employment but she knew she had to look clean. My heart sank as I thought about my showers filled with hot water back home. I was happy to learn that the hot water came back on an hour or so after I left the church and Lisa got her hot shower. I never found out whether she got the job.

I met a former girl scout when Girl Scout Troop 1335 came to help serve dinner and set up the beds for our guests. The girl scouts brought smiles to all of our guests but especially Dana. Dana, now in her fifties, reminisced about her days as a girl scout. As I imagined this now homeless woman as a smiling, young girl scout I wondered what events had led her to this place in life.

Perhaps the hardest for me to handle are the children we have as guests. We had a family of four – a mom and her three kids ages 11, 9 and 5. I watched as the kids played on the weekday school playground after dinner. A normal sight for sure. After all, I have watched all three of my kids play on that same playground many times over the years. But, my heart knew there was nothing normal about it. Church floors and homeless shelters are no place for children.

My list of stories goes on and on and I know the other RITI volunteers have their stories as well. Several of our regular drivers and overnight hosts have told me over and over again how much they enjoy getting to know our guests.

A couple of weeks after volunteering for RITI, the girl scouts decided, on their own, to come back and bring homemade desserts for our guests. Once they arrived at the church they asked their parents if they could stay and help out again. I was touched to see these girls, at such a young age, experience the joy of helping others as well as learn about the issue of homelessness. Perhaps this is the true meaning of success.

The goals of Urban Ministry’s RITI program are being met here at Trinity. So too is the greater goal of living a life filled with compassion as Jesus taught us to do.

I am grateful that Trinity has chosen to support this important ministry. As one of our guests said to me as we hugged goodbye, “Thank you for living the good life.”

We have more Room In The Inn (RITI) beds than ever before (98-200+/night), yet they are not enough to meet the needs of those who make it here to the Center. Increased demand, along with changes to local shelters’ entrance and eligibility policies, has led to a significant increase in women and families using RITI.

This year has brought a necessary change to administration of RITI, ensuring that those who are unable to stay other places are the first to receive beds in RITI. Often this is because a person cannot show required residency, or a certain length of homelessness, or there is no physical space in the shelter for additional people.

We are consistently checking in over 50 women who are ineligible for the Center of Hope (Women’s Emergency Shelter) every night. In December, we hosted 15 families (22 children); in the first half of January, we hosted 23 families (31 children).

We have 100 men on the “A” list (those who cannot get into the Men’s Shelter) every night – we check in as many as we can but are always forced to turn some away. The A list changes daily, as men who have been homeless for at least two weeks become eligible to reapply at the Shelter. Also, women and men who receive regular checks (disability, SSI, unemployment, paychecks) are ineligible for RITI unless they’re working with a staff member on a housing plan.

I couldn’t be more pleased with how smoothly things are running this year. The check-in/assigning teams are wonderfully enthusiastic and skilled (all the credit goes to our seven incredible evening coordinators); the hosts are genuinely interested in the folks they’re serving; the neighbors are responding well – all of this under circumstances that make this season more complex—and intense—than last year.

Urban Ministry Center began Room In The Inn in 1996. This year we have 130 houses of faith/organizations participating, and so far (Dec 1 – Jan 15) have offered 6,211 bed nights, for 54 children in 38 families, 221 women, and 596 men.

For more information about RITI or to find out how you can help: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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Yesterday, Hunter treated some of our neighbors to McDonald’s for lunch. That may not sound like much (and technically, it’s against our rules), but it’s a great example of how people go above and beyond every day to help our clients. Hunter normally volunteers in the laundry, but with our Tuesday van driver out of the country, Hunter stepped up to fill the need. What he didn’t know was that after he drove 31 people to the DMV, DSS, CMC and other places reduced to acronyms, if he brought some of them back late for lunch, we would save a plate for them. Instead he took matters into his own hands and made sure they were fed before he brought them back to 945 N College St.

And Hunter is just one of the 39 volunteers on site yesterday to help provide basic services to our neighbors. Afternoon Desk Volunteers Betty, Linda & Sandra helped neighbors sign up for services. St. Andrew’s United Methodist was there to serve drinks during lunch and dozens of other volunteers and staff helped to make Tuesday, November 27^th a day of smooth sailing and service to others including the following:

· 4 Job/resume counseling

· 31 Van transportation

· 35 Loads of laundry

· 45 Computer lab

· 47 Counseling

· 47 Showers

· 53 Phone calls

· 294 Lunches served

Our staff and partners also helped neighbors address their medical, income and housing needs. Nurse Lorraine, from CW Williams, is on site every morning to provide care, helping 16 people on Tuesday. Grace, our SOAR Coordinator, interviewed 2 new potential clients yesterday. She’s already helped 27 to access their disability income this year and she has a 100% approval rate! Megan works for the county’s Homeless Services department, but her office is at UMC so she is readily accessible to her clients. On Tuesday, she continued to do what she does best, listening and helping people find housing opportunities in Charlotte.

Vonnie and Jeff are volunteer counselors every Tuesday afternoon. Vonnie mostly helped people with transportation to their new jobs yesterday! UMC will provide a 10-ride bus passes for new employment (verified by our counselors) until that first paycheck arrives. The week before she had more requests for assistance with ID. Jeff also helped with transportation and ID, but one neighbor really worried him—a man with physical and medical disabilities, unable to work, not yet receiving any disability assistance, and ineligible for shelter. Sleeping outside will likely exacerbate his conditions. Jeff helped him with referrals to a different shelter and has another hope for him: Room In The Inn.

Urban Ministry Center’s Room In The Inn program starts on Saturday, December 1^st. That’s what team member Paul was working on Tuesday. Specifically, he’s found another congregation to support the program and is in the process of matching them with a more seasoned church. For the first few weeks the lowest bed number is 98, while the highest is 190. . .that’s a lot of people off the streets when it’s in the 30’s, becoming extremely uncomfortable, if not unhealthy to sleep outside.

Our annual gate survey was held on an October Monday and showed over 500 people coming onto our site (23 for the first time that day). We thank the community—our volunteers and our donors especially—for partnering with our staff to make yesterday, and every day, an opportunity for service, a moment of change, and a time to love our neighbors.

Tulips adorned the tables as a reminder that the season for Room In The Inn (RITI) was over. Since 1996, RITI has provided temporary shelter for the homeless, bringing them indoors to a welcoming environment during the toughest months of the year, December – March. But spring has sprung and Sunday, April 1^st, marked a celebration and thank you to the teams who make it happen.

RITI Director Paul Hanneman provided the thank you’s and shared the impact of this year’s program. 135 congregations/Y’s/colleges provided 18,105 overnight accommodations to 1,588 different individuals. This year brought an increase in families, with the number of children more than doubling from the previous season (from 29 to 62).

Stories and laughs were shared, but what struck me was the extra efforts the coordinating teams make to provide shelter. These coordinating teams come to the Urban Ministry Center to verify eligibility, and match 100-200 people with a host site for the night. If a host site falls through, it’s not “sorry about your luck,” it’s “let’s take action to help these people.” A great example was provided by the Coordinator and Assigner for the Saturday team (pictured below: Bruce Bauman, Coordinator; Paul Hanneman, RITI Director; Geoff McLaughlin, Assigner).

One Saturday there were 12 men who were assigned to a host site that was unable to fulfill its commitment that evening. The team jumped into action, finding two other sites to help the men. The Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter rarely turns away a request, and agreed to host 3 additional men that evening. University United Methodist, although they were not scheduled to host at all that evening, agreed to take 7 men. Team members Sandra Ward and Phil Reed drove the men to the sites. Mr. Reed purchased dinner for the 7 and spent the night with them. We cannot thank our volunteers enough for routinely reaching out and helping our neighbors.

RITI remains an awesome undertaking, enlisting over 5,000 volunteers each season to provide a warm, safe place, delicious meals, and wonderful fellowship to people who are struggling to find their way. Our thanks to everyone who makes this so successful!