Dozens of families will get a place to stay off the streets thanks to a new state grant to Family Promise.
The $150,000 grant will allow the Salem nonprofit to put homeless families in motels for short stays while helping them get back on their feet.
Family Promise has typically relied on a network of churches around the city to host homeless families, rotating them through local congregations for overnight stays while the nonprofit helps find more permanent housing and addresses other needs.
But during the pandemic, participating churches weren’t able to open their doors, and Family Promise began putting families in motels using state money.
“It helped the hotels because their numbers were down but it also helped families that needed a place to go,” said executive director TJ Putman.
The change meant the nonprofit could shelter about 25 families at a time — triple their normal capacity. But the money dried up and Family Promise scaled back the motel program, returning to their normal operations with about seven families at a time.
Putman said recently, someone from the Oregon Housing and Community Services Department reached out asking about any shelter beds that had recently closed.
“I didn’t think any money would come from it, I thought they just wanted an inventory,” he said.
He was then surprised to learn Family Promise was awarded money to bring motel sheltering back.
The grant comes from money set aside by the Legislature to sustain shelter operations that previously got one-time state funding, said Delia Hernandez, a spokeswoman for the agency.
It will pay for motel stays for 10 families at a time.
Family Promise’s contract runs through the end of March. Putman said a family typically stays in their program for about 38 days, so the money will let them serve a few dozen families during the coldest months of the year.
About half the families the nonprofit works with are chronically homeless, dealing with long-term poverty. The other half are typically made homeless because of a crisis — like a job loss, health issue or family separation.
“All the families staying in the congregations right now are dealing with those crisis issues,” he said.
Families facing homelessness first try to sell things and figure out solutions on their own, Putman said.
“If that doesn’t work they reach out to friends and family for help,” he said. “Once it hits that level, we typically get a call.”
Some families reach out to them directly. Others are referred by the school district or other agencies.
Putman said their goal is to provide one-time help at the moment a family is in crisis, assisting them to get stable housing as quickly as possible.
“Kids are better when they wake up in their own bed,” he said.
Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.
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Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.
