$100,000 hole in one

Golfers try your luck tomorrow at the West Virginia Golf Association's hole-in-one tournament for your chance to win big - and help YWCA Sojourner's win big too! Should a lucky golfer score a hole-in-one, he or she will pocket $50,000 and the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter for Homeless Women and Families will receive the other $50,000.

The event begins at 5 p.m. on hole No. 17 (approx. 145 yards) on Coonskin Park's par-3 course in Charleston. And not to worry - the course has lights that will illuminate the tee box and green. To enter, golfers must pay $1 and produce one canned food item, which will be donated to YWCA Sojourner's.

The field of contestants will be narrowed down to 10 golfers each hour through a closest-to-the-pin contest. The contest will last three hours, meaning a total of 30 players will shoot for the grand prize of $100,000. The top 10 contestants will also win a VIP golf card - an access pass that allows golfers to play more than 200 of the top golf courses in West Virginia and Virginia.

Come out and try your luck tomorrow (Saturday, December 20) at Coonskin - rain, snow or shine! You'll be helping homeless families in need and may even walk out $50,000 richer! Special thanks to the West Virginia Golf Association for thinking of YWCA Sojourner's and for caring so much about giving back to our community.

One night without a home

This morning as we bundled up and headed out the door, most of us inevitably did our share of grumbling about the wind and the cold. After all, with temperatures dropping into the teens last night, who would want to be out in the elements any longer than absolutely necessary?

The answer: more people than one might think.

Why? Because tonight, members of our community are coming together and spending the night outside on Magic Island in an attempt to simulate the realities of homelessness. From 6pm to 6am, individuals are gathering to spend "One Night Without a Home." The goal of this annual event is to spend a night outside to discuss, think, and learn about homelessness, and to promote advocacy and education about this critically important issue.

Presented by the WV Mental Health Consumer Association & Kanawha Valley Collectives, the evening will include a food drive, guest speakers, live music, facilitated discussion groups, and a candlelight vigil. As a co-sponsor of this event, the YWCA of Charleston encourages all to attend - even for just part of the evening - to get a small glimpse into the lives of those who are unable to meet even their most basic needs of shelter, food and clothing.

Last year alone, 338 homeless children came through our doors at the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter, and nearly 800 homeless adults benefited from our services. Our annual return-to-shelter rate of approx. 5% demonstrates that we are making slow but steady progress toward our goal of eliminating homelessness.

Are you willing to spend one night without a home?

Remembering our veterans

Today as we remember the brave men and women who have served our country, we salute them for their service and thank them for all they have done for us. However, we often forget the scores of veterans that struggle to meet basic needs such as food and shelter - and we fail to ask what we can do for them.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, an estimated 154,000 veterans were homeless on any given night last year. The number of homeless female veterans is estimated between 7,000 and 8,o00 and quickly growing. This is a relatively new phenomenon because only recently have so many women (more than 190,000 in Iraq and Afghanistan alone) been serving in the U.S. military. We invite you to read yesterday's MSNBC story, which highlights the life of a 38-year-old homeless female veteran and raises awareness of this growing phenomenon.

The MSNBC report notes several reasons why we see veterans become homeless:

• Repeated deployments make it difficult for them to keep their finances in order and for reservists to hold on to their civilian jobs.
• Fallout from military service — which can include post-traumatic stress disorder — can seriously damage family and other relationships.
• Those stresses can lead to withdrawal and depression, which can make it difficult to land a job.
• The lack of income makes it hard to pay rent or a mortgage.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has only 15 facilities that offer residential mental health treatment specifically for women with post-traumatic stress disorder. Out of 500 VA-run homeless shelters, 300 can accept women and only 22 have programs that address female veterans specifically or have living arrangements separate from men. Therefore, female veterans without housing often resort to local shelters like the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter for Homeless Women and Families.

Each year, YWCA Sojourner's has homeless veterans and their children walk through the door, where they receive basic needs such as food, shelter and clothing, as well as vital supportive counseling, substance abuse counseling, education and job training.

So today as we honor our veterans, let us remember those in need and thank them for their service by continuing to support them in thought, mind and deed.

good food, good fun, great cause

Last night, close to 200 men came together to cheer on the Mountaineers at the 3rd Annual Guys Night Out, while raising money for the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter. This fun-filled night - complete with brews, BBQ, cigars, games, raffles and plenty of football - boasted our biggest turnout yet!

Proceeds from last night's event will help fund critical programs at YWCA Sojourner's. In the past year alone, YWCA Sojourner's provided services to 1,080 unduplicated individuals - 338 of which were homeless children. Take a look some of our other 2007-2008 highlights:

• Served an average of 62 people nightly in the 75-bed facility
• Provided 5,530 case management/counseling hours
• Provided 81,305 nutritious meals
• Provided 19,202 shelter nights
• Provided 4,537 hours of service and support through 408 volunteers

Furthermore:

• 92% of residents found and maintained housing beyond six months
• 86% of program participants gained meaningful employment, and 98% maintained that employment
• 87% of program participants moved to a higher educational level
• 533 individuals participated in the educational program, were tested, and received classroom instruction
• 301 individuals improved their computer skills
• 22 participants entered college or vocational school

A huge thanks to our many wonderful Guys Night Out sponsors, volunteers, and attendees. We couldn't have done it without you!

Top picture (L to R): Joe Long, Jeff Sandridge, Rob Rosano, Margaret Taylor (YWCA Sojourner's Shelter Director), Justin Southern, Randy Daniel, Debby Weinstein (YWCA Executive Director) and Paul Buechler.

Left: Guys tried their luck at the football throw contest during halftime.

Right: They couldn't wait to get their hands on the 400 lbs of pork BBQ hot off the grill!

Making the world a better place

Avery is 2 ½ years old. Like most young children, he loves to play outdoors – climb on jungle gyms, play games, and have picnics with his family while they enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Sadly, like many of the children currently residing at the YWCA Sojourner’s Shelter for Homeless Women and Families, Avery has never had a yard to call his own - until now. Thanks to the West Virginia Nursery & Landscape Association (WVNLA), children like Avery now have their very own backyard – a newly-created green space and recreation area at the YWCA Sojourner’s Shelter on Charleston’s East End.

In January, the 100-member statewide association voted to donate an “extreme makeover” landscaping project to a deserving group, in lieu of its annual summer meeting. In just 10 short weeks (ground was broken on June 2), WVNLA and its partners transformed the YWCA Sojourner’s property from a barren lot with a portable basketball hoop, minimal playground equipment, a large unusable pile of dirt and concrete, and dumpsters that were quite the eyesore, to a landscaping and architectural masterpiece.

The shelter now boasts a welcoming entrance with seating areas; a center courtyard with a planting area; an outdoor dining plaza located off the cafeteria with access through new doors; a game court complete with a basketball hoop, hopscotch and foursquare; a playground for younger children; a gathering space for parents to socialize while watching their children play; and greenery to screen the walls and dumpster areas.

WVNLA chose the YWCA Sojourner’s Shelter over several other charitable projects because of the significant impact a newly-renovated space would have on the children who reside in the shelter. YWCA Sojourner’s is home to an average of 65 individuals at any given time – approximately 25 of which are children. All funding, design, materials, and labor for the project were donated by WVNLA – estimated at approximately $100,000. The completed project includes every aspect of the original plan, as well as additional features such as two new awnings and security gates and fences to help ensure residents’ safety.

The YWCA and all the residents at YWCA Sojourner's are truly inspired by WVNLA's generosity and dedication and are grateful beyond words for this gift. We hope that WVNLA's project inspires other organizations to follow their example and give back to the communities in which they live - to enhance and improve the lives of others and, simply, to make the world a better place.

Buy a book, help the homeless

Tomorrow (Saturday, July 19), Books-A-Million on Corridor G is designating one cash register as the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter register. What does this mean? It means that for every purchase made on this register, 20% of tomorrow's total sales will be donated to help homeless women and families become self-sufficient through YWCA Sojourner's.

So whether you're looking for that bestseller you keep hearing about, a pop-up book for the kids, the latest summer cookbook, or even your favorite magazine, stop by Books-A-Million tomorrow between 9am and 11pm and make your purchases at the YWCA Sojourner's register...and encourage your family and friends to do likewise!

With the help of generous contributors like you and community-conscious companies like Books-A-Million, YWCA Sojourner's will continue to serve more than 1,200 individuals each year through shelter and comprehensive services. Our goal? To eliminate homelessness - not just manage it - by empowering individuals to become self-sufficient.