Net Literacy has donated computers to 1000s of nonprofits since our inception, including schools, public libraries, community centers, senior centers, facilities for the victims of domestic violence, afterschool programs, and churches, among others.
I was just forwarded an article from last year that mentions past Net Literacy Student Chair David Johnson help providing computers for a homeless shelter enabling it to reopen. For more information, email me at danielkent(at)netliteracy.org
Read more by clicking on the link: Reopening of Beyond Homeless provides needed entity in Putnam County or read the text below:
Reopening of Beyond Homeless provides needed entity in Putnam County
The DEPAUW on February 13, 2014 by Panyin Conduah
Reflection and celebration took place at 309 E. Franklin Street as Beyond Homeless Incorporated announced the reopening of their shelter during an open house Thursday night.
Executive Director Tanis Monday and the Board of Directors of Beyond Homeless Incorporated (BHI) held the open house to thank the many people who helped with the reopening of the homeless shelter. The service has been unavailable since its closing on September 10, 2011 due to a lack of funding.
The building, under the new name Community Hub, houses the Beyond Homeless Incorporated (BHI) and the Greencastle Housing Authority (GHA). The Putnam County Emergency Food Pantry also signed an agreement Monday, February 10th to provide services at the facility. Matt Mascioli, co-founder of Community Hub LLC., sees many benefits in the collaboration of these services.
“I think the Community Hub will provide great synergy for getting people back on their feet,” Mascioli said. “We’re so excited to have these three organizations all working in tandem.”
The facility has come a long way since its downfall in 2011. After the city was unable to buy the building, home to the Greencastle Housing Authority, both Bob Jedele and Mascioli, co-founders of Community Hub LLC, felt the need to purchase it.
“So many others have been doing their part for years and Bob Jedele and I thought that in addition to serving alongside others on the board of Beyond Homeless Incorporated, forming the Community Hub and purchasing the building was the part that we could play,” Mascioli said.
After securing the facility, the Board of Directors of Beyond Homeless labored to secure a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, in which they would be exempt from federal income tax for their property. They also strove to raise a $120,000 budget for the shelter. The money raised came from donations and three-year pledges from residents of the Greencastle community, as well as DePauw faculty and staff. Since lack of funding contributed to the shelter going under in the past, the Board made finding secure funding a top priority.
“As BHI, we’re confident that by ensuring our funding for three years, we’ll be able to continue to develop other means of financial support to be sure that our efforts are sustainable,” Mascioli said.
The next step in getting the shelter running was finding someone to lead the service. The Board of Directors quickly hired Tanis Monday as executive director. Monday left her job of five years as executive director at the Putnam County Museum to work at the shelter. Initially, Monday was hesitant in taking the job, but in the end she felt it was the right fit.
“It was really what I was supposed to do next,” Monday said. “It’s where I’m meant to be. I took a leap of faith and jumped.”
Monday is slowly adjusting to the job as she tackles day-to-day obstacles such as bringing the building up to code and furnishing the building with supplies to keep it running.
According to the 2010 U.S. Census, one in six people living in Putnam County live below the poverty line. Beyond Homeless’ goal is to provide shelter for women and children in Greencastle due to the high demand and allows women and children to stay for up to 30 days. Monday hopes the collaboration of the services will help get the families back on track. The shelter does not hold men in need, but the service does offer off-sight overnight housing for them.
“We don’t want to just be a feather bed,” Monday said. “We want to be a spring back helping them get back on their feet.”
The Greencastle and DePauw communities also offer help through donating their time to helping clean and organize the facility, as well as donating supplies for the shelter’s use. Sophomore David Johnson started helping out at the shelter after working with community development through his Winter Term course, entitled ‘Make it Happen.’ Through a personal connection with Net Literacy, a nonprofit organization in Indianapolis, Johnson was able to get his friend to donate computers to the shelter.
“I enjoy that the computers will be in a central place to help people in an efficient manner like making resumes and finding jobs and places for children to go to school,” said Johnson.
Although the city was unable to offer financial support in the past, they are now pushing to support the shelter in any way possible. Mayor Sue Murray says the city sets $10,000 a year aside for the shelter and homeless solutions. The city also hopes to reach out to other towns in Putnam County to help sustain the shelter.
Beyond Homeless plans to officially open its services at the end of March 2014.
