Donation will keep shelter open, for now
Published 12:00 am Thursday, July 31, 2003
Mary Aldaco won’t be on the street tomorrow. She won’t stay in the park for now. She’ll be staying at the South Central Community Action shelter, which received a donation Wednesday that will keep it open &045; and Aldaco sheltered.
A day after Community Action officials announced the shelter would close its doors after the Minnesota Office of Opportunity cut its funding, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage said it will donate $3,000 to keep the shelter open for another three months.
&uot;Yesterday was so gloomy, and today everybody’s talking. We have a good community,&uot; said Director Collette Turcotte after receiving the news about the donation. She said she’s had other people call her with possible plans for funding, but WFHM was the first commitment.
The money will pay utilities, insurance and rent, but only a little case work for three months, she said. &uot;We’re going to have to do a minimal shelter, but that’s better than no shelter at all.&uot; She said Janye Villarreal of WFHM called her on Wednesday morning and asked how much Community Action would need to stay open for three months.
&uot;(Aldaco’s story) really touched us and we wanted to do something to help,&uot; Villarreal said. Aldaco, her daughter and grandson have been homless since their house caught fire last month.
Villarreal and her business partner discussed the shelter Wednesday morning, and decided to give enough money to keep the shelter operating for three months, hoping more funds can be raised.
Villarreal said they thought the funding cut would have dire results. &uot;Some cuts you can take. But people not having homes, you can’t take that,&uot; she said.
They said they thought the donation was appropriate since their business is helping people pay for homes, and because they’re familiar with the struggle of people trying to find a place to live. &uot;It is very close to our hearts,&uot; Villarreal said. &uot;(Now) we’re helping people get a place in a different way.&uot;
Villarreal said they plan on helping the shelter find funding for the next year, and have already made several calls to people in town.
Turcotte cried a little after explaining what Villarreal and Tamke were doing and how it gives her faith in the community.
She said the complete cut of homeless shelter funds by the OEO left her surprised and without an immediate plan to fund the shelter. She said Community Action will discuss how to raise funds for the next year, but also what to do about staffing.
&uot;Whenever you lose $157,000, you have staffing issues.&uot; She said the shelter has had to dip into reserve funds since April, and that there may not be money to continue to pay employees. But she said she was grateful for the donation.
(Contact Tim Sturrock at tim.sturrock @albertleatribune.com or 379-3438.)