Last Meeting’s Program_(6.4.24 bulletin)
Mandi Howell, director of Waynesboro’s New Hope Shelter, discussed the facility’s program. The 38-bed nonprofit shelter, located on South Potomac Street, provides aid for the homeless and destitute in our area. There is a women’s dorm for single women, a men’s dorm for single men, and five units for families with children.
Howell said the shelter usually has 30 to 35 residents at any given time. They start with a 30-day and get extensions of 60 days provided they meet rules and expectations. The maximum stay is a year.
Residents face a range of issues, Howell said. She said that shelter personnel have found that individualized counseling with residents is more effective than requiring rote group classes and a one size fits all approach. “We try to show those who need love a love as Jesus would have given them,” she said.
Volunteers are always welcome to work in the shelter’s thrift shop, provide meals and serve in other capacities. Monetary donations as well as donations of clothing, furniture and household items are desirable, as the shelter depends almost entirely on community support.
