La Popular Tamale House

Our fundraiser today was canceled due to the rain in Denver Colorado. I would like to give a special thanks to Dan, the owner of La Popular Tamale House in Denver, Colorado, who donated 10 dozen tamales for our event. Dan is going to replace his generous donation of tamales for us on this upcoming rescheduled Tuesday. I thank God that I have been blessed with special people like Dan as well as Jeff from The Country Buffet in Englewood, Colorado, who go above and beyond to help out those in need. Thank you Dan for your continued blessings.

Hundreds of Homeless Find Shelter in Vegas Drainage Tunnels

LAS VEGAS, NV (April 28, 2010) – Lisa Holmlund looked up and saw the bright lights of Caesar’s Palace. Millions of people do it every year, but she had a view seen from a perspective few others know is possible.

She was peering up through a street manhole that allowed the brilliant lights to shine down into the drainage tunnels that are home to hundreds of homeless people.

Holmlund, director of student ministries, and four other young adults from Montecito Covenant Church in Santa Barbara, California, traveled during spring break so they could minister to people above ground and beneath the gutters.

Estimates of the number of people who live in the tunnels range from roughly 400 to 2,000. The complex maze of tunnels run beneath some of the glitziest hotels. They are part of the city’s underground storm system built to protect the desert adult playground from occasional heavy rains.

“It is pitch black in the tunnels,” Holmlund says. “It had rained a few times this past month, so it was also damp. We definitely had to walk through gross water in these tunnels filled with garbage, broken bottles, old sheets, random everything. I'll be honest - there were times I got really nervous while in the tunnels.”

The team was led to the tunnels by Strip Church, which draws its name from the famous stretch of Vegas real estate. The church is connected with XXXChurch and Fireproof Ministries, which reach out to people working and living on the strip as well as other places that many people fear or feel too uncomfortable to visit.

One of the women on the Montecito team had been eager to go with Holmlund when the pastor invited her to participate. Holmlund did not know the woman’s past and was surprised by her response, “That’s where I was homeless and on drugs.”

“Jesus has obviously made a huge transformation in her life,” Holmlund says. “It was so interesting to have her share with us about the lives of these individuals who are willing to do anything to make a living, specifically if you are a single mother. We learned later that more than 90 percent of the women who are dancers or strippers in Vegas are single moms.”

During part of the trip, the group traveled on the Strip Church bus (top photo) boldly painted with the message “Jesus Loves Sin City” and a picture of Jesus emblazoned on the side. “We drove all around the city in it, including up and down the strip,” Holmlund says. “People stared at us, some took pictures of the bus, some cursed at the bus and turned their head away thinking we were sinful ourselves. Some laughed. It was crazy.”

The five-member team (lower photo) ministered to prostitutes, addicts, homeless, and employees of adult bookstores, Holmlund says. The team also made balloon animals for people at a local swap meet while sharing the gospel, also serving meals at several sites.

Additionally, the team helped Amistad Covenant Church host a dinner for people who are not part of the congregation. Amistad is the first Evangelical Covenant Church plant in the city, having formally launched earlier this month. Arturo and Sandra Sales, who are planting the church, assisted Holmlund in planning the trip. Click here to read a previously published story.

Holmlund said she initiated the trip because “I wanted to look at compassion, mercy, and justice in uncomfortable places.” The five now have an expanded vision of what that means.

Denver's Homelessness Plan

Did you know that in Denver?

43% of the homeless are women and children.
Many hard-working people have become homeless because they have lost their job or had a healthcare crisis.
Area shelters can only provide a fraction of the beds that are necessary.
Over 40% of people in shelters are working and only 10% of the homeless earn money from panhandling.
The Cost of Inaction
Studies in New York and Philadelphia showed that the average person who was chronically homeless accessed over $40,000 per year in public services. In San Diego, the costs were as high as $200,000 over 18 months. The details of these costs can be found at the Interagency Council on Homelessness website.

These same startling costs are true for Denver's homeless.

One night in jail cost $174 per arrest. It would not be unusual for four arrests and bookings to occur per year at a cost of $696.
A monthly stay in emergency shelter costs $775; the typical stay is six months or $4,650.
Two meals a day at soup kitchens cost $2.66. Meals for 200 days cost $532.
Emergency room visits costs $1,000. Homeless individuals average two visits per year at $2,000 per homeless person.
One night at Denver C.A.R.E.S. "detox" center costs $295. Chronic alcohol/drug abusers averaged 80 nights per person last year. The annual cost was $23,600 per person.
One hospital stay averages $29,921. In 2004, 1,074 homeless people were admitted for hospital stays in Denver. Those who only access healthcare through the emergency room do not receive follow-up care or services beyond immediate intervention, making them more likely to return to the hospital in the future.
Denver's Road Home employs the "Housing First" model of providing stable housing coupled with the appropriate social services. Under this model the cost to house and provide services to the chronic homeless is:

Monthly rent for an efficiency apartment in Denver is $376. A year's lease totals $4,512. This total cost is reduced as the occupant is stabilized and is responsible for paying 30% of their earned income toward rent. The cost of providing other social services is $10,000 per year.
For people in shelters the cost is less:

40% of homeless people living in shelters work. These households are able to initially pay a portion (average: $100/month), the annual subsidy is $3,312. Social services cost is substantially less for a non-chronic homeless person.
Mayor John Hickenlooper and the Commission to End Homelessness, through a comprehensive community effort, have established a plan to end homelessness in the City & County of Denver. Find out more about the plan.
Panhandling is a difficult issue faced by every major city, and Downtown Denver is no exception. People who panhandle may need help, but the experience of numerous social services agencies indicates that money given to individuals on the street often supports destructive habits, including alcohol and drug addiction.

The Downtown Denver Partnership encourages Downtown workers, visitors and residents to redirect their generosity to the institutions best suited to helping our city's homeless and struggling citizens. By donating your money and volunteer time to organizations and service providers, you play an integral part in improving the lives of these individuals.

A Win For The Homeless

New York City just got a little bit saner. You helped make it happen, and I'm writing to say thanks.

On Friday, Mayor Bloomberg announced that the City is dropping plans to charge homeless families "rent" to stay in shelters. Instead, the City will have shelter residents set aside any extra money they make in savings plans. Once they leave the shelters, they can use these savings to find real housing and get back on their feet.

In just two months, we went from a misguided plan that would trap homeless New Yorkers in shelters to a real incentive program that will help rebuild their lives.

That change happened after we spoke out. More than 6,000 New Yorkers signed the petition against shelter rent sponsored by Working Families and the Coalition for the Homeless. Our effort got the media's attention, and once the press started reporting on the plan to charge the homeless rent, City and State leaders quickly began looking for other options.

Assemblymember Keith Wright and State Senator Daniel Squadron deserve much thanks and praise for leading the charge in Albany to stop the City's rent plan and promote the savings program instead. And Mayor Bloomberg and City leaders deserve credit for embracing this alternative.

You can read more about the City's announcement in this New York Times article.

This is a real victory for all New Yorkers. Thanks again for being a part of it. Now let's win some more.

Homeless Numbers " Alarming"

More families with children are becoming homeless as they face mounting economic pressures, including mortgage foreclosures, according to a USA TODAY survey of a dozen of the largest cities in the nation.
Local authorities say the number of families seeking help has risen in 2010 in Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Seattle and Washington.

"Everywhere I go, I hear there is an increase" in the need for housing aid, especially for families, says Philip Mangano, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, which coordinates federal programs. He says the main causes are job losses and foreclosures.

Other factors have been higher food and fuel prices hitting families with "no cushion," says Nan Roman of the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

Many mayors have 10-year plans to end homelessness and had reported progress until this year. The most recent official count, in January 2007, found 971,888 people living on U.S. streets or in shelters, down 8% from January 2006.

"We saw family homelessness began to increase last winter," says Sally Erickson, Portland's homeless program manager. "There's definitely a spike in the last six months." The number of requests for emergency shelter doubled from fiscal year 2007 to fiscal 2008, which ended in June.

Darlene Newsom, who runs United Methodist Outreach Ministries' New Day Centers, which provide shelter programs for families in Phoenix, says the number of requests is "alarming." She says families who never sought help before are calling.

Los Angeles says it has no 2009 data. Miami reports no major change. Chicago has not had a surge in requests, but more come from renters evicted because of landlords' foreclosure, says Nancy Radner of the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness.

Media Letter.

Editor

My name is Trey Louis Noran, and I am a Reverend for the homeless. I am known in several venues from the entertainment business, as my God mother was “Mae West” to my Ministry called “His Love Street Ministries” along with a tee shirt named “Real men Love 2 Cuddle.” My mission is to open a homeless hotel and several Out-reach centers through out the USA to help clear up some of our nations major homeless situation.

The need is major but I do not only want to feed and shelter the homeless, but also help them clean up and gain productive employment. Why do I come to you? In my many travels through life, I have learned it is not only a person’s talent, but also whom you know.

When it comes to the homeless, I have many well-wishers that wish me the best. I have Stars from Tina Turner to Cher on face book, although they believe that what I am doing is great they only send me messages of “Good Work” and “We love what you are doing.”

What I truly need is a push to get the word out nationally and a newspaper that will take an extra stand for God and help me. I have worked hard this last year and a half to get the word to Hollywood and Nashville, but now I need the media. Please search deep within your heart and help me make a difference in a person’s life and to save a life by giving them the promise of a better future. Therefore, many in the homeless world have given up. They hurt, hate and commit crime just to get housing even if it is for just one night. Let us stop a major part of this unnecessary heartache through my vision from God to open a Homeless Hotel and Outreach Center. I have used all of my strength and determination to fight for this cause for over two decades and find that I now need the media’s help. Please help me publish my cause in your newspaper or tell your Media friends.

" His Love Street Hotel " Denver, Colorado

His Love Center is designed with God’s best in mind, run by Pastor Trey Louis Noran; following a vision God gave him over twenty years ago. We have a true desire to help those whom are homeless and full of despair – to help clean and educate them, to help them find meaningful employment, and show them the true Love God... gives. Pastor Trey Noran’s original vision was to do more than simply feed the homeless and pray for them. In 2010, the dream that God had instilled in his heart many years ago will be brought to life. Just because people are homeless, does not mean they have second- or third-best?