Region Ten Emergency Services provides crisis intervention and referrals for mental health and substance abuse rehabilitation. Recently, Emergency Services hosted an employee lunch-hour potluck, which raised over $400 for PACEM. We are grateful for their donated dishes and dollars.

PACEM’s Community Partners include agencies like Region Ten, whose specialized support  - and fundraiser – help us make a difference in the lives of our homeless neighbors.

Student Ministries of Virginia purchased 50 pillows, 50 blankets, 40 sheet sets, 100 towels and 300 washcloths. Still in the spirit of giving, youth groups came together and collected more than a thousand dollars for PACEM. We are grateful to these generous students who gathered in Charlottesville.

Thanks to Maple Grove Christian Church for helping connect us to these wonderful students, and to much needed materials for our shelters.

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December 2, 2008

Charlottesville Area Community Foundation Announces Second Annual Catalyst Grant to Virginia Supportive Housing

The $75,000 grant will support the creation of a Single Room Occupancy (SRO) housing project for Charlottesville’s homeless population

Today the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation (CACF) is pleased to announce its second annual Catalyst Grant in support of the creation of a Single Room Occupancy (SRO) housing project to provide permanent, supportive housing to Charlottesville’s homeless population. The $75,000 grant has been awarded to Virginia Supportive Housing (VSH), a Richmond-based nonprofit that is partnering with local community leaders to develop an SRO for the Charlottesville area.

Single Room Occupancy projects are studio apartment buildings with on site property management and support services staff. SROs have been widely recognized, in many other communities, to be an effective way of moving homeless people off the streets and out of shelters and into stable living conditions.

Founded in 1988, Virginia Supportive Housing (VSH) is a private, non-profit 501(c)3 community development corporation that provides permanent housing and comprehensive support services to individuals and families who are homeless or who have disabilities in order to initiate and promote their transition to productivity and independence. VSH is managed by a twenty-three member Board of Directors and supported by a Council of Advocates.

In 2005, the Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless (TJACH), working in partnership with the Piedmont Housing Alliance, PACEM, and other organizations, received a pre-development grant from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development to pursue the creation of the first Single Room Occupancy (SRO) housing facility in the Charlottesville area. In October 2008 Charlottesville City Council included the development of an SRO Project in its “Strategic Priorities for Use of Charlottesville Housing Funds.”

Virginia Supportive Housing Services is in the site development phase of the project. This fall students from UVa’s School of Architecture have been assisting with the review of several sites throughout Charlottesville. VSH plans to determine a site by spring of 2009, after conversations with local community and business groups, and hopes to break ground on the project in 2010.

“The CACF Catalyst Grant will have a direct impact on the affordable housing challenge in the Charlottesville area by providing proven, permanent housing blended with appropriate levels of support services to help clients stay housed – and find the support they need to succeed in other areas of life,” said Candice Streett, VSH Deputy Director.

Launched in 2007, the Catalyst Grant initiative allows CACF to address current unmet needs in the community. By bringing critical issues to light the CACF Catalyst Grant draws attention to community problems while leveraging dollars to fund innovative solutions. For the first three years, the Catalyst Grant will be directed to affordable housing projects; in 2010 CACF will focus the Catalyst Grant on another pressing community need.

To make a tax-deductible contribution to the CACF Catalyst Grant please make checks payable to the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation with a note in the memo for the Catalyst Grant. Mail checks to CACF, P.O. Box 1767, Charlottesville, VA 22902 or go to http://www.cacfonline.org/.

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The Charlottesville Area Community Foundation is a permanent endowment dedicated improving the quality of life in Charlottesville and the Counties of Albemarle, Greene, Orange, Louisa, Fluvanna, Buckingham, and Nelson. CACF makes grants of more than $4 million annually through its Community Endowment and its many donor-advised funds. Since its inception in 1967, the Community Foundation has made grants of more than $27 million to hundreds of nonprofit agencies. www.cacfonline.org

For more information, contact:
Dave Norris
PACEM
Phone: 434-465-1391
cvilledave@hotmail.com

 CHARITY CHUCK WAGON EXTRAVAGANZA
Nov. 15 Cowboy Lunch to Support PACEM

CHARLOTTESVILLE November 6, 2008 – Ace Contracting and Buckaroo Cordon Bleu will host an authentic Chuck Wagon Extravaganza Saturday, November 15 from 1-5 p.m. at Page’s Field in Batesville, Virginia. The charity event will benefit People and Congregations Engaged in Ministry (PACEM) – winter shelter and support for homeless men, women and children. Buckaroo Cordon Bleu will provide a menu of “cowboy cuisine” including Boeuf Bourguignon and Cassoulet.

“We are very grateful to Ace Contracting and Buckaroo Cordon Bleu for their support, and I encourage people to attend this fun event,” says Dave Norris, Executive Director of PACEM. “PACEM is here to ensure that no one in Charlottesville has to sleep outside this winter and the proceeds from this lunch will help us keep our doors open to the homeless over the coming months.”

The event will include an auction for a custom handmade chestnut dining table. Tickets are $50.00 per person and reservations are required. Call Ace at 434-293-6290 for reservations. Guests are encouraged to wear western attire.

PACEM will begin its fifth season of winter homeless shelter Saturday, November 8, 2008. Donations to cover shelter operating costs can be made online at www.pacemshelter.org  or by mail to PACEM, P.O. Box 14, Charlottesville, Va. 22902.

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About PACEM
Since 2004, PACEM, an inter-faith, 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, has been serving the homeless population of Charlottesville, Va. year-round by providing shelter, meals, compassionate support and access to services. Since its inception, PACEM has provided over 20,750 nights of shelter and over 60,000 meals to over 600 different homeless individuals through its congregation-based winter shelter program, and another 268 nights of hotel lodging through its Women and Children’s Emergency Lodging Program. For more information about PACEM, visit www.pacemshelter.org  or contact Dave Norris, PACEM’s Executive Director, at 434-465-1391 or at cvilledave@hotmail.com.

If you come across anyone who is in need of shelter this winter, please feel free to send him/her our way.  Intake is from 5-6pm at Holy Comforter Church behind the downtown library, starting on Saturday and running through the middle or end of March.  PACEM exists to make sure that no one in Charlottesville ever needs to spend a night out on the streets in the dead of winter.  Even a cot in a crowded church basement is preferable to that.

St. Paul’s Memorial Church (1700 University Ave.) has generously agreed to host a service of remembrance and appreciation for Tommy next Tuesday, Oct. 28, at 10:00am.  Please join us if you have memories of Tommy to share, or if you simply wish to pay your last respects.  (For directions and parking info., click here:  http://www.stpaulsmemorialchurch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=21&Itemid=90)

Tommy had a lot of people who cared for him, yet Tommy died homeless.  There are many more Tommys out there on the streets of Charlottesville.  In honor of Tommy, let us redouble our efforts to make sure that none of them die homeless too.

If you would like to support PACEM by hosting a party or informational gathering to raise awareness of local homeless issues, to raise funds for PACEM’s programs and to create an opportunity for enriching experiences for yourself and others, please contact Marie Lynch at marie@pacemshelter.org or call 434-465-1327.

http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/home/headlines/26862749.html 

While no one expects Step Up or any Housing First initiative to have a 100% success rate, we know from many other communities that programs like this do make a big impact in the lives of the homeless and, in some cases, actually save communities money (given the significant amount of costly public services [jails, courtrooms, emergency rooms, shelters, detox facilities, etc.] that many chronically homeless individuals consume).