Mens Emergency Shelter

There are lots of ways you can help…

One of the questions I hear over and over from folks in our community is this: "How can I help the homeless?” When we see someone on a street corner begging for money, or hear about someone struggling to pay their bills and about to lose their housing, we feel compelled to help. Yet we almost immediately feel helpless as to what’s the best thing to do.

When I hear this question, here’s my response. The streets of Houston are not a safe place for ANYONE to live. The best thing you can do is to encourage the person to come to one of Star of Hope’s emergency centers to get help. Visit our website for addresses, phone numbers and maps for Men’s Development Center and Women & Family Emergency Shelter locations. You can also get specific help by calling Star of Hope at 713-748-0700 or by sending a request through our website.

In the first six months of this year, the demand for our emergency services at Star of Hope has RISEN 33% from 2011…and this is the fourth year in a row we have seen increases. There is clearly great need in our city! Annual surveys are done each January to do a “one time count” of individuals observed to be homeless on a particular night, and these numbers fluctuate year to year. In addition to those counted on the streets, we see hundreds of others come to us from marginal or dangerous housing situations seeking emergency shelter and help every day. We call these the “hidden homeless.”

The good news is that Star of Hope is here to provide, thanks to you! And we don’t turn anyone away who comes desiring our help. More good news…once they are here, they can engage in life recovery and skills building programs designed to help them find a new hope in living and new abilities to live a successful life as a productive member of our community.

But we need your help today to serve the large and growing numbers who are coming! You can donate now…financially if you are able, or by conducting your own donations drive and then delivering to Star of Hope.

Just look at what these special young people have done just recently to help the homeless of our city.

If you’re interested in conducting your own drive, please learn about all the types of items we need as donations or explore other volunteer opportunities with Star of Hope.

So no need to wonder about how to help, just check out these resources and come join us as we serve!

Ways to Give Houston
Star of Hope Mission

I don’t know about you, but we still have teenagers at home and we are so glad school is out and our “TO DO” lists have been greatly simplified!

Here at Star of Hope, summertime brings significant “TO DO” lists for two reasons: 1) each summer we gear up to serve hundreds more homeless in our city who come for help during the hot summer months, and 2) we have all of our resident families’ children here with us all summer.

It’s an exciting time of service and wonderful things happen here in the summer each year!

Our Men’s Development Center downtown is running over capacity already, and our Women & Family Emergency Shelter’s continuous overflow is already running at 60-75 persons sleeping on the floor each night, and it’s only June!

This summer, with your help, we are planning to provide:

• more than 167,750 meals with cold water, juice and milk to battle heat stroke and other summer illnesses
• 77,404 safe beds in our three air-conditioned facilities, so each Client can recover from a day in the heat
• a summer filled with laughter, life-changing activities and God’s love for more than 536 homeless boys and girls
• distribution of 9,360 bottles of cold water over the summer months from our Love-In-Action Van
• all with programs and services to encourage and bring new hope, and a path to independence once again!

While it is a challenge, summer provides some of our best opportunities to invest in the lives of children and families.

Want to help? GIVE NOW... A transformed life often begins with a simple meal shared in love. As our guests come in from the heat for a nutritious meal, your gift today will help turn a summer of crisis and pain into a SUMMER OF HOPE! At just $1.80 per meal, consider how many lives your generous support can touch this summer.

Blessings, and I hope you enjoy your summer!
 

Help Make this a Summer of Hope for Houston's Homeless
Star of Hope Mission

Star of Hope serves 250-300 children each day, who are staying in our facilities with their parents as they work to recover from homelessness.

Just last week, a group of 5th grade boys at Second Baptist School, arrived at our front door with 19 boxes of children’s books! This all started when a young man named Fielden cleared all of the books he had outgrown from his room after Christmas. As he wondered who could use them he remembered his family serving at Star of Hope’s Women & Family Emergency Shelter downtown. He decided to give the books to the kids at Star of Hope.

Fielden and his mom met with Elizabeth Hatler, Manager of Volunteer Services here at Star of Hope. As he learned how much children who come to Star of Hope experiencing homelessness with their families would love to have books of their own, he decided to do a book drive with his friends at school. Fielden sent out letters to 25 or so of his friends, asking them to help. The 5th graders worked, and then their work was multiplied by a bunch 11 and 12 year olds, who caught the spirit and built the collection. Bags and boxes of books kept coming, as the kids’ and families’ excitement grew!

Last Thursday, Fielden and 15 of his teammates arrived in numerous SUV’s and swooped into our lobby with box after box of children’s books for our kids. After touring the Transitional Living Center, he asked the boys to take a moment to pray that God would use the books, then added, “Tebowing allowed.” In a wave, the boys dropped to their knees and prayed. Not only did they ask that the children at Star of Hope would benefit from their books, but that God would use them to draw the children closer to Him.

There are so many ways to help those experiencing homelessness in our city. We welcome your help in organizing food, clothing, school supplies, diapers, and yes…book drives for those seeking help at Star of Hope. Feel free to contact our Volunteer Services Staff to discuss how your family , church or corporation can help us in this way, as we meet to provide the needs of 1,100 men women and children each day!

Vounteer Opportunities Houston
Host a Drive for Needed Items
Star of Hope Mission

• meet their immediate needs
• get medical and family services partner referrals
• work through issues to restore their lives, income and a place to live

Can you help us today, with significant increase in needs in Houston this summer?

On behalf of Star of Hope, I would like to extend special congratulations to Mark Camero and Kevin Sweat from Boy Scout Troop 642, which meets at Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church, for achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. Few scouts would tackle such demanding projects or set such a high standard of excellence! 

In addition to constructing large storage units for our Women & Family Emergency Shelter, Eagle Scout Mark Camero collected 1,408 children’s books. Many of the books were new and they all will provide many hours of reading fun and adventure for the children who come through our doors.

Eagle Scout Kevin Sweat designed and built a beautiful playground seating area and walkway for the Transitional Living Center. Parents now have the perfect place to watch their little ones and their children feel more secure to play, learn and explore with mom or dad watching over them.

What a blessing it’s been for our mission to have an opportunity to work with several other awesome scouts.   This week, David Reeves delivered 15 wide, sturdy outdoor benches for the TLC cafeteria courtyard. Once he decided on a design and built a prototype, he had a small team cut the lumber on Day 1. He organized such a big crew for Day 2 that the project was completed in only two hours! These benches will circle the trees and provide clients with a shady place to enjoy our gorgeous weather.

Thomas Perez organized a party for children at the Transitional Living Center complete with Bible stories, crafts and refreshments. Of course, the children had a blast….so did Thomas and his team! Alex Collier also focused on the children and collected more than 800 books for five – thirteen year olds.

Our partnership with Eagle Scout candidates isn’t over – we continue to be tremendously blessed by these fine young men! Kendall Bruce is building benches for the Women & Family Emergency Shelter.  And Brian Howell has designed a bench seating area to beautify the Yellowstone side of the TLC campus. His crew will be here in two weeks! 

A variety of project options makes Star of Hope the perfect site for your next scout, corporate or team-building project. Contact the Volunteer Services Department to discuss a project for your group.

Community Service Opportunities Houston

Why do people throughout our community volunteer at Star of Hope? Just ask Ann, a retired social worker, about the benefits of volunteering. 

Ann began volunteering in the Computer Learning Center at our Transitional Living Center in 2005. Although she loved helping clients who were eager to learn new computer skills, the timing just didn’t fit with Ann’s busy schedule. She moved to our Women & Family Emergency Shelter where she has been assisting with intake and referrals for our overnight guests ever since. Here’s an e-mail she sent to Latasha Smith, the CLC instructor with whom she worked:

Hi Latasha,

Those lessons you taught me in Excel have come in handy. I am using Excel for a project that I am helping with at the Women & Family Emergency Shelter. Thanks for showing me how to do that! I guess you can count me as another Excel success!  I would not know what to do at all without the lessons you gave me.

Blessings,
Ann

A flexible schedule and the opportunity to learn new skills are only two of the benefits that volunteering at Star of Hope can add to your life as you partner with us to serve Houston’s homeless men, women and children.

Learn more at Community Service Houston

Recently, while running errands, my husband pulled the car into a Chevron station. As he filled up the tank, my attention focused on the poster hanging beside each pump, which showcased the many ways Chevron volunteers contribute “human energy” to make our community a better place. Not only was I delighted that local Chevron volunteers were recognized, but also thrilled that Star of Hope was included – both the top, left- and right-hand photos were taken during Star of Hope projects. 

We first worked with Chevron volunteers during their 2009 Humankind Week, and thus, a wonderful, new partnership was born. Throughout 2010, volunteers from Chevron’s Black Employee Network assisted in many areas, such as the kitchens at all three facilities and the Christmas Workshop. 

During the sizzling-hot, triple-digit, Houston summer, it was a funny sight when several Chevron volunteers arrived for work all bundled up in heavy jackets, knit hats and gloves! But they came prepared to clean the walk-in freezer at our Women & Family Emergency Shelter. While they cleaned the freezer and others assisted with lunch preparations, several more volunteers baked a scrumptious treat. You can imagine the eager anticipation of shelter clients as the aroma of mouth-watering fudge brownies wafted through the air!

In the fall of 2010, Chevron groups celebrated their Humankind Week by working on major projects at Star of Hope. Volunteers at the Women & Family Emergency Shelter painted several atrium spaces and cleaned out storage areas. Working in shifts over two days, another Chevron group prepped and painted the iron fence surrounding the perimeter of the Men’s Development Center. Thanks to the generosity of Chevron and the hard work of their dedicated volunteers, we will spend less on facility maintenance and have many more dollars to directly help Houston’s homeless men, women and children!

We look forward to additional opportunities to partner with Chevron and the many other volunteers in our community who have a heart for the homeless. 2011 will be an amazing year as together we serve those in need.

Learn how you can help Houston's homeless with Star of Hope. Visit Community Service Volunteers Houston.

For the last 20 years, the Hard Rock Cafe has closed its doors on Thanksgiving Day. Although this popular downtown Houston eatery is closed to the public, the kitchen and waitstaff are quite busy. Instead of celebrating Thanksgiving with their own families, everyone at the Hard Rock volunteers on their day off to host a gourmet dinner for clients at Star of Hope’s Women & Family Emergency Shelter and the Transitional Living Center. This year, the Hard Rock team was joined by another very special team – Head Coach James Dickey brought the University of Houston Men’s Basketball team to help. The UH players, still in their warm-ups after an exhausting practice session, autographed posters and visited with our families before heading inside to wait tables. 

The UH basketball coaches and players weren’t the only Cougars waiting tables for Star of Hope clients during the holidays. UH athletic director Mack Rhoades was joined by his family as they helped serve Christmas dinner at the Men’s Development Center. Rhoades and his family set out desserts and filled drink glasses as they helped make special Christmas memories for men who are often forgotten. 

"It's a very humbling experience," said Rhoades.  "It makes you realize what you have and it's a blessing to be part of this."

Thanks to the UH Athletic Department for reaching out to Houston’s homeless men, women and children during the holidays! Merry Christmas and Go Coogs!

Get involved with Star of Hope and help homeless men, women and families in our community. Find opportunities of interest to you at Community Service Volunteers Houston.

Imagine what it must be like to be out on the streets with no place to call home. Frantically, you search for shelter and a safe place to fall asleep. That’s when you remember that someone told you about Star of Hope. In desperation, you put your last two quarters in the payphone, hoping with everything you have left inside that you can talk with someone, that you don't get a recording.

Although most of us are used to automated telephone systems, navigating menus can be a frustrating process. And if this is the only call you can make, it’s even worse. 

At Star of Hope, our goal is for every caller to reach a “live” voice – to get the help and answers each caller needs and deserves. To accomplish this goal, we opened a call center that is staffed entirely by volunteers. 

No one has taken a more active role in the call center than our friends from Willis of Texas, Inc. About 30 Willis employees staff both the morning and afternoon shifts every Wednesday. Thanks to Willis and other call center volunteers, each call is promptly answered by a friendly voice that’s filled with compassion. Once calls are answered, volunteers remain on the line until callers receive the help they need - even praying with callers. Volunteers are not interested in the number of calls they answer, but in delivering the best possible service.  It is far more than simply answering the phone, it is a ministry! 

Our friends at Willis have been very generous with their time, and yet, found a way to do even more during the holidays. In addition to volunteering in our kitchens and at the Christmas Workshop, they also raised $5,550 to purchase gifts for moms and dads at our Women & Family Emergency Shelter and men in the recovery programs at the Men’s Development Center. Not only will there be gifts for the children, but for the adults, too. No one has been forgotten!

During my eight years working for Star of Hope Mission, I have watched over and over as homeless clients move from virtually “no hope” with total dependence, to beginning their independent walk in a new life.  Star of Hope is not just a Soup Kitchen in Houston!  We offer Christian Ministries with such services as drug rehabilitation, emergency homeless services, parenting classes, career building classes, for homeless persons and for battered women, men and for families.  We offer care for men, single women and for families at our three homeless shelters and transitional living centers.

Last week I got to meet a young woman who lived here at Star of Hope twelve years ago.  When she came here, she was 4 years old, and she got into a ballet dance program offered by a volunteer.  Her family got back on their feet and now she is married and has three beautiful children.  She was present at the opening of our newly decorated Intake area at Star of Hope’s Women & Family Emergency Shelter.  It was a real blessing to visit and to see how well she is doing now.  She and her family had received a chance to get back on their feet, and they had taken it! 

I hope that you weren’t ever homeless!  But if you had been, wouldn’t it be great to know that there was a place, where people would listen to you, pray with you, cry with you, and try to meet your every need!  Star of Hope is such a place!

Would you consider partnering with us, through offering a prayer for the less fortunate, and through making a contribution?  You can go to Charitable Donations Houston to make a contribution.