Four Ways You Can Help Samaritan House During the Holidays

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1. Volunteer

You can volunteer to serve at meal times, or work on projects that will benefit the shelter. During the holidays, many people love to feed the homeless and assist with meals. No need to be a culinary wizard this is incredibly helpful and happens all throughout the year.  The Samaritan House Volunteer Coordinator coordinates the meals served by volunteers.  Her name is Missy and she can be reached at 406-257-5801. Currently, the last two Thursdays and Mondays of each month are available for volunteers to serve a dinner meal. 

2. Take a tour

Taking a tour of the shelter is educational and informative.  Many times, when people take a tour of our facilities they say that they have learned more about homelessness in Flathead County and mention new and innovative ways that they can help.  It's fun for everyone.   

3. Donate household items or items from our Needs List

Donated items such as dishes, furniture and most any type of household items can be donated and are tax deductible.  Samaritan House staff keep a consistent and changing Needs List of items that are needed at the shelter.  
Here are a few ideas of things that would really help Samaritan House:

Clorox Wipes

Laundry Detergent

Lysol

Bleach

Three Shower Curtains

Towels, wash rags, hand towels

Milk

Fruit

Office Supplies

4. Donate Money

Giving money will provide clothing, education, food, and shelter. It will help the homeless in more ways than you may realize and the more money that is given, the more services and help can be provided. There are several ways that you can donate.  

You can donate on our website:  samaritanhousemt.com 

On our blog:  homelessintheflathead.com  

On the Facebook page:  facebook.com/homelessintheflathead

Or you can Venmo money to Samaritan House, scan this code.

Or you can donate to Samaritan House via PayPal.  

Whatever your holiday traditions are we want to thank you for taking 

time to consider Samaritan House during the Holidays!

Homelessness and Sleep Deprivation

Conventional wisdom says that the average adult should aim to get about eight hours of sleep each night. Children need significantly more sleep time while older adults may manage with less. Before the invention of effective artificial lighting, the cycle of night and day regulated sleeping patterns. People worked during the daylight hours and when night fell they went to bed.

But what happens if you are not able to get the proper amount of sleep necessary for a healthy lifestyle? One of the things we are proud of at Samaritan House, is that our residents are able to get a good night sleep. Sleep deprivation causes difficulties for everyone, regardless of where you live, but the homeless are at higher risk of not getting the proper amount of sleep.

The fact that you become tired and need to sleep at times proves that this is vital to the body's functioning. Just as you need to eat and drink a certain amount and exercise to stay healthy the same applies to sleep. The optimum sleep time varies between individuals, but if an average person gets less than six hours of solid sleep each night, they are sleep deprived. Your body needs this rest to recoup energy expended during the day. A serious lack of sleep weakens the immune system to increase the likelihood of infection. This is compounded for children, who need even more sleep than adults. Many homeless children are more susceptible to becoming physically run-down when they can't sleep.

Lack of sufficient sleep makes a person grumpy and irritable. It is easy to say or do things you later regret if overtiredness prevents you from thinking before speaking or acting. Consider how many business and social relationships disintegrate because one party says or does something without sufficient forethought. A good night's sleep ensures that you are much better equipped to respond well to the challenges that invariably come up in human dealings. Applying and interviewing for jobs when sleep deprived is a tough obstacle to overcome.

While genetic and diet factors are key determinants of whether or not an individual is prone to develop diabetes, lack of sleep also plays a role. According to some studies, getting sufficient sleep helps the body process glucose. If you usually sleep less than five hours per night, your body is unable to effectively perform this function and risks of developing type 2 diabetes increases.

When you invest in Samaritan House, you help change lives in real and practical ways like helping families and individuals get a restful night sleep so they can face a future with hope.

-resources from facts.com

Current Needs

This February 33.2 inches of snow fell in Kalispell, making it the snowiest February on record. Daytime temperatures hovered in the low single digits and the wind chill plummeted well below zero on several occasions. And while winter weather in the Flathead might fluctuate between nasty and brutal, our needs at Samaritan House remain consistent. Here are some items we can always use.

Temporary beds like the one pictured above.  We at Samaritan house feel that bunk beds offer less dignity and respect but are in need of adding more beds. ($129 at WalMart.)  This will give us more ability to flex as demands rise in the colder months.

Donations of warm socks, and boots. Our residents might begin and end their days in the shelter, but they also spend a great portion of their time outside the shelter pursuing employment opportunities as well as going to jobs they have. Many of them walk or rely on public transportation so warm gear is a lifesaver.

Toilet paper and bathroom supplies are also coveted and appreciated. These items are easy to take for granted when they are always on hand, but imagine what it would be like if you need them but don't have them. Personal hygiene is essential to fostering feelings of self confidence and if these items are donated, we are able to use our resources for other things we need.

Cleanliness is an important (as well as state-mandated!) virtue for us so we also really appreciate cleaning supplies. We want to do our best to provide a clean environment for our residents, staff, volunteers, and guests. Spending a great deal of our time in community necessitates keeping things clean and sanitary to reduce the risk of sickness.

All of these items are appreciated because we use them often. Thanks for all that you do to make Samaritan House a place that meets the needs of its residents on a daily basis. Treating people with dignity and respect are important to us and you help us do that. If you have any questions, please call our office.

12th Annual Cowboy Up for Samaritan House Auction

Where were you 12 years ago?

It's an interesting question because we tend to focus on the present and the future, but sometimes the past gets little fanfare. And, "Why 12 years?", you might ask? Because in a few weeks it will be the 12th annual Cowboy Up Benefit for Samaritan House. We have been hosting this fundraiser as long as it takes a child to go from Kindergarten to Graduation. And it's been quite a journey for us, as well. We are honored to host this Auction and the longevity of this event shows its importance.

This year's event will be held at Gardner's Auction, which provides an ideal venue for all we have to offer. Single tickets can be purchased for only $40 or a table for 8 can be reserved for $300. Doors open at 5 pm and an incredible dinner will be served at 6 pm. Use this opportunity to catch up with friends while having a wonderful time and donating to an important cause.

Because that's what this is really about- there is a point to be made and lives to be changed. There are a thousand different things you can spend or invest your hard-earned money on but none might count so much as this Auction in regards to saving lives.

Yes, there will be phenomenal music by Smart Alex. You will have a great time and enjoy yourself dancing the night away. And the auction items are worth the experience by themselves, with a wide variety sure to tickle anyone's fancy- there will e something for everyone. But the entire night is a reminder that homelessness in the Flathead Valley is a real issue. We gather to raise money and resources so we can provide opportunities to change lives. This will be an epic night with so many wonderful moving parts aimed at a singular goal: Addressing homelessness in our community so that our community will be strengthened.

You can play a part in this and we hope to see you there! Please call our office if you have any questions regarding the auction or this night.

Cold Weather Plans

Homelessness presents unique challenges and obstacles for daily life. Homelessness in Montana, in the winter, can be deadly, which is why Samaritan House has its own Cold Weather Contingency Plans aimed at saving lives. We will find a place for you. 

Director Chris Krager adamantly states that, "The nature of homelessness in Montana is such that at certain times of the year it can be fatal." If you have lived through a few winters in the Flathead Valley, you know the potential brutality firsthand. This past week windchill dropped well below zero, reaching nearly -25, depending on where you lived. This could be a death sentence for someone living in a tent or other structures not suitable for intended dwelling. 

These are not just words on a screen as we learned this week, see the photo above.

Samaritan House is equipped with mobile beds and we are putting them to good use. Any safe place in our shelter has been turned into a makeshift sleeping unit because we recognize this is an extremely important issue. Living outside, in the exposed elements, is difficult in the best conditions so when homelessness is exacerbated with frigid wind, snow, and ice, we need to get involved. Heart failure, hypothermia, and frostbite are all real possibilities.

Thanks for all you do because your financial support and donating resources allowing us to do our best to take care of those who need a place to shelter from the weather. 

Winter Warm Up

Winters in Montana can be quite inhospitable and sometimes resources are hard to come by. Winter Warm Up, a Project Homeless Connect event, offers a multitude of opportunities for the community to unite together and provide all sorts of services for anyone who needs them. Over the years, thousands of individuals, families, and Veterans have received everything from free tax services  and clothing to pet care. There is a wealth of resources available and volunteers to help you navigate through the process.

Medical and cosmetic services along with great resources to assist with employment opportunities are just some of the incredible things you will find. There will be free food and live music and treats for the kids, so please take advantage of Winter Warm Up Winter Warm Upbecause once it's over, it won't be back for another year!

Homelessness is More Than A Word

Homelessness is more than a word.

It is a lifestyle that encompasses more than statistics and reports. Its a condition that reaches past point-in-time census reviews. The four little letters at the end of the word represent something larger than not having a livable habitat; they ask us to consider that some people are caught in a cycle that most of us have never had to experience. Homelessness is lived and experienced and not fixed to the words typed on this blog. When we are done reading about homelessness, we move on the next thing in our day.

If you experience homelessness, your day takes on a whole different meaning.

Eradicating homelessness would be an amazing thing but it involves more than providing temporary shelter to keep families off of the street. If homelessness is truly a fluid lifestyle that takes the shape of an individual's specific circumstance, then the way to address it is to understand that unique situations call for specific measures. Giving a person shelter from the elements for a few nights is one thing (a great thing!) but helping them establish a lifestyle to sustain them involves a lot more moving parts.

We live in a world of stereotypes and prejudgements that make it easy to ignore diseases and focus on symptoms. If someone is chronically homeless, they have been caught in a net of poverty and transient circumstances that very well might condition them to reject measures to help them find permanent residence. Combating these issues is a process that transcends conventional ideas that assist people who are rendered homeless due to sudden circumstances. Homelessness manifests itself in different ways and calls for person-specific solutions.

Samaritan House has been addressing chronic and episodic homelessness for decades. We have gathered some amazing tools over the years and we will never stop doing all we can to save lives by treating each person, individual, or family as their own set of circumstances. We have resources and staff who are dedicated to helping our residents take the next step in a journey no person should have to experience. We believe that addressing the obstacles in a person's life means more than identifying them.

Many of you have been contributors for years and we absolutely could not do what we do without your kindness and generosity. Thank you for all that you do... It is our heart to help people escape a lifestyle and not just circumstances. You make a difference by allowing us to make a difference.