From Don Fornoff, Bishop’s Task Force on Homelessness:
The Task Force has been working as a group since November 2018 to ensure that the churches of the Diocese of Olympia have been active in providing their efforts and supporting community efforts to combat homelessness. The Task Force gathered monthly (and still does) to discuss best practices, what actions work and what doesn’t, and how to get the word out to the entire Diocese. The Task Force survived the disruptions of the pandemic and continues with 28 members from around the Diocese.
Led by the Rev. Jeffrey Boyce, Deacon, Missioner for Homeless Ministries, the Force has a three-fold purpose: Promote activities that individuals and congregations are doing to be part of the solution; be a clearing house for information and resources; and be an advocate for the homeless, work with State and local officials on policies that affect the homeless and share that information with others in the Diocese.
The Task Force continues to gather information and share it with others. Now, we are trying to concentrate on extending the mission, assisting with problem-solving, and providing help and counsel in showing the way to action. The faith community has long been a stalwart supporter of ways and means to serve the homeless. Many- we dare say most- parishes in the Diocese of Olympia have been doing good deeds since homelessness became a major issue in our communities. Deacon Jeffrey says let’s keep doing better work even as our towns and cities are getting better at targeting the issues.
Here’s a question and an answer. Why do the homeless stay where they do? The question isn’t why; the question is, where on earth do we expect them to go?
Of this from the Diocesan website:
The Bishop’s Task Force on Homelessness is a group of dedicated lay and ordained people tasked with finding best practices to address homelessness and the crisis confronting all of us in the Diocese and building a knowledge base of resources and documenting ministries that work to help those who are unhoused that can be deployed throughout the Diocese.
If you have a list of “best practices” for helping with the homeless problem, it would be useful for you to share it with the congregations, so we don’t have to “reinvent the wheel”.