RICHMOND, Va. -- Advocates for Richmond's homeless community said they're reaching a breaking point trying to find help for families and children who they claimed were falling through the cracks of the shelter system.
Rhonda Sneed with the nonprofit Blessing Warriors and Nancy Williams with the nonprofit 3Blessings2U shared photos of children, as young as 7 months old, who they said were left with no shelter and no place to go.
"They were in the street under bridges. That one family of five was sitting in the park on the bench soaking wet with a dead phone," Sneed said. "The oldest child is fourteen. I looked at her and said, 'It's going to be okay, I promise you. We're going to figure this out.' All she could do was put her head on my shoulder and look at me. She has stopped talking. She's tired."
"She was in tears," Williams said about Sneed feeling overwhelmed by the number of families who need assistance. “This breaks us down.”
This winter season, the City of Richmond opened two new shelters.
The shelter at 1900 Chamberlayne Avenue, run by the Salvation Army, operates as a walk-up inclement weather shelter. It includes 150 beds for adult men and women but does not accept children.
The shelter at 7 N. Second Street does accept families with children, but it cannot be accessed on a walk-up basis for immediate assistance -- in contrast to last year when the City provided a walk-up inclement weather shelter specifically for mothers with children.
“How do you... turn around and don't have any place for the children? The children should have been the first thing you thought of," said Williams.
"How could you forget about the babies? Let something happen to one child. Then what's going to happen?" Sneed said.
The family shelter is managed by the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care (GRCoC), and in order to get in, families must call the Homeless Connection Line and then go through the GRCoC's coordinated entry process which is designed to prioritize families with children.
Kelly King Horne, executive director of Homeward which is the planning agency for the GRCoC, said all calls are returned within one business day.
However, advocates said some families can't get through when they call or face delays getting a call back.
“We called yesterday and they said no one is available," Sneed said.
Horne said since December 7, the Homeless Connection Line has referred twelve families to shelter or housing programs. She added the shelter system has the capacity to continue serving families.
To make up for what they considered a lack of shelter access, volunteers are now relying on community donations and assistance from faith leaders to put people in hotels through the holidays.
Pastor Robert Winfree of New Life Deliverance Tabernacle said he's currently assisting one family whose child was not allowed into the inclement weather shelter for adults.
“There’s a scripture that says after you have been strengthened, then you need to reach back and help strengthen your brothers and sisters," Winfree said.
Pastor Joe Reeves of Tabernacle of Praise Ministries has also joined the effort. Reeves has consistently allowed homeless individuals to take comfort at his church during the daytime hours when some overnight shelters close, providing them with meals, clothes, and other necessities.
“I always think when I see these people in the street, I always say, 'If that is my child, if that is me, how do I want to be treated?'" Reeves said.
Both pastors, whose churches are located in Southside Richmond, said they need other faith organizations to help too.
“We have places of worship that have spaces that can be utilized to assist and help if we are willing," Winfree said.
“We're calling on all our religious leaders to come in whatever way you can. Come support," Reeves said.
Homeward has created the following resource guide with information for people who may be in crisis.
"We know that rising housing costs are causing significant stress in our community and that stress can be heightened during the holiday season. We encourage people without a safe place to stay to reach out for assistance," Horne said.
Nonprofit leaders also wanted to provide contact information for community members who may be interested in helping:
Blessing Warriors: 804-300-8051
3Blessings2U: 804-714-6195
New Life Deliverance Tabernacle: 804-233-2730
"We're out here begging people for money, almost literally or else advocating for the money, and the money is sitting in accounts. I don't get it. Let that money go, just like Moses. Let that money go and help this community. Help these children out here," Williams said.
The City of Richmond provided the following statement for this story:
“We recognize the continued importance of supporting families in crisis which is why we have further invested in the city’s Family Crisis Fund which provides critical financial support to families in crisis. Additionally, we have expanded our partnership with the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care by standing up a new 50-bed year-round family shelter at 7 N. 2nd Street. This new shelter adds to the city and the region’s shelter system expanding capacity for those in need. Individuals or families currently homeless or within three days of losing their housing should contact the Homeless Connection Line at (804) 972-0813. After contacting the Homeless Connection Line, families and individuals in crisis are able to gain access to shelter and additional wrap around services and supports through a prioritized entry system. This system and process is coordinated by the Greater Richmond Continuum of Care.”
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