Christmas at the Shelter

(Santa visits the kids at Samaritan House)

(Pastor Dan Heskett of Northridge Lutheran Church delivers gifts from their Giving Tree)

(Rob Quist entertains the crowd at the fundraiser luncheon)

This is a very heartwarming time at Samaritan House. Several people, businesses and churches have given presents for our shelter guests. Everyone here will be getting presents directly because of the generosity of the community. Many of the children were not expecting much of a Christmas this year, much less a real Santa. When a child sees the words "From Santa" on a gift, it seems to give them hope.
Likewise for Samaritan House itself this is a very heartwarming time of year. Charitable donations are how Samaritan House is able to operate the homeless shelter throughout the year. Most of those charitable donations arrive in the last few weeks of the year. To make donating even more accessible we also offer online giving.

Samaritan House would like to express our heartfelt gratitude and deep appreciation for your continued support of the people that mean so much to us.

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas!

Montana Homeless Person's Memorial Day is December 21st. This also happens to be the first day of winter - the longest night of the year. There will be a memorial service at noon in Helena Women's Park. Sherri Downing from the Montana Coalition for the Homeless has collected the names of Montana's friends and neighbors who have died this year while homeless. Last year, there were 28 names. The event lasts about an hour and is held outside so people can understand what some of our neighbors are trying to survive. It has been a quick start to the winter season this year. In fact, the Daily InterLake reported last week that precipitation for the year is 19.96 inches, 3.71 inches ahead of the long term average and 6.76 inches ahead of last year. I verified myself with the National Weather Service that this year has averaged 2.3 degrees colder than normal. Samaritan House staff have added beds wherever possible resulting in greater numbers of people served than we could have imagined for this year.

We are coming in to the holidays in need of your help. Charitable donations are down while demand for services are at an all-time high.

In your holiday giving would you please consider Samaritan House. Thank you.

A Home of Their Own

Kristi Albertson, a reporter for the Daily InterLake newspaper just did an article about a family that Samaritan House was recently privileged to help.

The article is called, "A Home of Their Own" and it follows this family through the shelter and on towards their move in day, the day they get a home of their own...

Rob Quist Concert & Lunch to Benefit Samaritan House

Samaritan House will be hosting Rob Quist for a lunchtime concert on Friday, December 10th, 12:00 pm (Noon). The event will be at the Samaritan House Administration Building - the former armor reserve building on Meridian Rd. The $10 admission will include lunch, all proceeds to benefit Samaritan House, the local homeless shelter.
Rob Quist, a rancher's son and native Montanan, is recognized as one of the West's best known songwriters, composers and main stage performers.
Samaritan House has been working to provide Montana hospitality to some of the community's most vulnerable citizens. The shelter is full and overflowing. Demand for services is at an all-time high due to the recent difficult economic scenario and exreme weather conditions.
Everyone is encouraged to come, have lunch and help support Samaritan House, a local homeless shelter.
Here are the details:
What: Rob Quist Concert & Lunch
When: Friday, December 10th at Noon
Where: Samaritan Hosue Admin Building
1110 2nd Street West
Kalispell, MT 59901
Cost: $10 includes lunch and concedrt
Directions: On the corner of Meridian Rd. and 2nd Street West - across the street from Peterson Elementary School.

Billy - Homeless in the Flathead

High Poverty Rates According to New Report

This week the goverment released new economic data that shows high poverty levels. The report continues to say that there are more "working poor" than there has been in decades.
Jessica Headley a reproter for KCFW (Kalispell's NBC affiliate) came to the shelter to put a local face on the economic report. The article is titled, "Flathead Valley Isn't Surprised to Hear High American Poverty Rates." Click the link there to read the article and see the video.

Flathead Parade of Homes

The Flathead Valley Parade of Homes will be September 10th - 12th. If you are considering attending you really shold buy your tickets from Alliance Title, 501 S. Main St. in Kalispell. A portion of the ticket sales will benefit Samaritan House. Alliance Title phone number is (406) 752-7606.

July 21st at Tamarack Brewing Company

Samaritan House 20 Year Celebration and Open House BBQ

Everyone is invited! Come help us celebrate 20 years of serving the homeless of the Flathead Valley.
What: 20th Birthday Celebration and Open House BBQ
Date: July 11th, 2010
Time: Noon - 4 pm
Place: Samaritan House Administration Building
(the former armory on Meridian Rd. across from Peterson Elementary School)
Come have a burger, enjoy some live music by Tim Torgerson and Jason Singleton, and see the Samaritan House.

20 years doesn't seem like that long though it is still a major achievement and something that deserves celebrating. What started as a small shelter in a rented apartment has grown into a multi-dimensional approach to homelessness. Samaritan House's rich history of community support and collaboration has provided for thousands of the area's most vulnerable citizens.
Some of the more notable milestones in Samaritan House's history are:

• July 11th, 1990 Samaritan House came into existence from it's previous version Flathead Public Housing, Inc. Executive Director, Sister June Kenny came to Samaritan House from the Poverello Center, Inc. a homeless shelter in Missoula, Montana.
• 1998 - With the help of a courageous group of community volunteers and the City of Kalispell Community Development Dept., Samaritan House expanded to include Transitional Housing, a bigger shelter and additional permanent housing. It was at this time that Community Action Partners of Northwest Montana (then called Northwest Montana Human Resources) gifted Samaritan House with eight additional housing units for low-income permanent housing.
• 2002 - Demand for services reached the number of beds available, essentially every bed has remained full every night.
• 2002 - Samaritan House joined the Montana Continuum of Care for Homelessness. This made Samaritan House part of a greater statewide system of homeless services and formalized the Case Management services.
• January, 2004 - Samaritan House established it's Homeless Veterans Program. This brought a valuable collaboration between the Regional VA at Ft. Harrison, the local VA Clinic and Samaritan House offering services to our local homeless veterans.
• January, 2007 - Samaritan House began to offer Outreach Services.
• July, 2008 - Samaritan House acquires Sonstelie Hall USARC, the former armory property on Meridian Rd. across from Peterson Elementary School. This acquisition more than doubled Samaritan House's property holdings and brought greater versatility.
• March, 2010 - Samaritan House adds 13 beds to the shelter, a 26% growth for the shelter.

Project Homeless Connect Kalispell, Montana Pictures

Project Homeless Connect in Kalispell, Montana at the Samaritan House was a major success. Here are the Montana NPR interviews from the event as it aired on the Montana Evening Edition of Thursday, June 10th.

Project Homeless Connect

Project Homeless Connect is tomorrow at the Samaritan House Administration Building. It is essentially a one-day, one-stop event that will host every available service to help the homeless. It is community-wide including services from several other agencies, non-profits and organizations.

Project Homeless Connect is an international movement to end homelessness which has been replicated in over 200 cities across the United States including Billings and Missoula. The purpose is to help eliminate barriers that prevent homeless people from gaining access to aid.

Key characteristics of Project Homeless Connect include: Hospitality, Immediacy, Partnership, Community and Excellence.

"Project Homeless Connect is equal parts welcoming homeless neighbors into the life of the community, changing the way resources are accessed, and acheiving quantifiable results for the people experiencing homelessness." - Interagency Council on Homelessness

Here are the details:

Date: June 9th, 2010, 9am - 4pm

Location: Samaritan House Administration Building

Address: 1110 2nd St. West in Kalispell, Montana

Services Available: Pet Services, Medical Help, Educational Help, Financial Education, SNAP (Food Stamps), Medicaid, Social Security Application Info, TANF Applications, Healthy Montana Kids, CHIPs, Food, Child Care, Housing Counseling, Legal Services, Mental Health, Case Management, Literacy Help, Personal Hygiene Products, Clothing, Haircuts, Veteran Services, Senior Services, Job Services, Transportation, Assistance towards Photo IDs, Gas Vouchers, Cell Phone Minutes, and lunch will be served.

Little Caesars Love Kitchen Serves Free Pizza to the Needy in Kalispell

(The Little Caesars "Love Kitchen" in parked in front of Samaritan House.)

Kalispell, MT, May 21, 2010 - The Little Caesars Love Kitchen came to the Samaritan House to provide fresh Little Caesars to feed approximately 100 people on May 24th.

A pizza kitchen on wheels, the Little Caesars Love Kitchen travels across the continental United States and Canada meeting the needs of the hungry, the homeless and disaster survivors.

"The Love Kitchen was created to provide quality meals for people who need them," said Little Caesars local franchisee Susan Hill. "As a member of the area business community, it's important to me to support people when they need it and help make the community stronger. I'm excited to support this program with food and staff to provide a quality meal for people who otherwise may not get one."

The Little Caesars Love Kitchen has fed more than two million people in 48 states and four Canadian provinces. It has also responded to disasters such as recent floods in North Dakota and Iowa, the hurricanes in the Gulf area in 2008 and in 2005, the site of the World Trade Center attacks on Sept 11, 2001, and the 1995 Federal Building bombing in Oklahoma City. Established by Little Caesars in 1985, the Love Kitchen exemplifies Little Caesars' long standing tradition of giving back to America's communities.

"We know that it's important to reach out to the communities where we do business, and help make a difference," said David Scrivano, president, Little Caesars Enterprises, Inc. "As a family company, we are proud to work together with our local franchisees and company-owned stores to coordinate the vehicle, staff and food to be there for people in Kalispell who need assistance."

Local Little Caesars franchise owners and company regional offices donate all food and labor costs for the Love Kitchen servings. An estimated 50,000 Little Caesars franchise owners and employees have volunteered their time over the years to support the program in their local communities.

(Shown below is David Fox the driver of the Love Kitchen and Susan Hill owner of the local Little Caesars franchise as they make pizzas in the Love Kitchen for the Samaritan House residents.)

Photos of the 3rd Annual "Cowboy Up" Event

Photos by Ruthie Krager