Raleigh/Wake Partnership to End and Prevent Homelessness provided life-saving assistance by leading a coalition of businesses and nonprofits collecting donations and supplies over the weekend
RALEIGH, NC (January 10, 2017) – Shana Overdorf knew that while many Raleigh residents were excitedly preparing for a snow day, one group was dreading it – the more than 100 homeless individuals who are exposed to the elements each and every night. As the Executive Director of the Raleigh/Wake Partnership to End and Prevent Homelessness (Partnership), Overdorf did not need to be reminded just how dangerous winter weather can be for people experiencing homelessness. On Friday morning, she posted to Facebook encouraging friends to think about what they could do to help. From there, the response began to snowball. By Monday, a coalition of businesses, nonprofits and ordinary citizens had come together to donate over a hundred meals and urgent winter necessities. They started a weekend-long campaign that successfully collected over $2,000 worth of supplies and raised an additional $5,000 in funding for the Oak City Outreach Center.
“We worked to save lives this weekend and seeing so many of Raleigh’s residents come together is truly inspirational,” said Overdorf. “This momentum will be used to continue the conversation on how our community can help our most vulnerable population every day, not just during a crisis.”
Overdorf’s original Facebook post proved to be a catalyst for the involvement of many others, including:
- Nicole Stewart, Development Director at North Carolina Conservation Network and co-founder of The Beehive Collective, who, after seeing Overdorf’s social media post, launched a viral CrowdRise fundraising campaign that surpassed $5,000 in donations in under three days.
- Zack Medford, owner of Paddy O’Beers, coordinated a winter coat drive and collected tents, blankets and more than five dozen coats. Zack and his family also prepared and served four dishes of baked macaroni and cheese.
- James Miller, Director of the LGBT Center of Raleigh, created a widely shared Amazon Wish List registry of survival items, volunteered his time and provided desserts as part of the 3 p.m. meal on Sunday. Through this list, the community has donated over 20 tents, 25 sleeping bags, and many other supplies.
- Jennifer Martin, Executive Director of Shop Local Raleigh, recruited local businesses to donate food and their time, including Rocky Top Hospitality and Neomonde, while other businesses contacted Overdorf to find out how they can get involved.
- Dean Ogan, owner of Rocky Top Hospitality, delivered two trays of baked chicken, two trays of pot roast and assorted desserts.
- Chris Saleh, owner of Neomonde, provided two trays of rice.
- Jeff Tippett, founder of Targeted Persuasion, made cornbread for 100 people.
- Christopher Baker, Volunteer Coordinator at William Peace University, provided chili and sandwiches prepared by students.
- Hugh Hollowell, Founder of Love Wins Ministries, provided a couple hundred hand warmers and a dozen bus passes for guests.
“Ending homelessness in Wake County can feel like an impossible task sometimes, but seeing our community come together like they did this weekend gives me a profound sense of hope that it is absolutely possible,” Overdorf said.
By creating strong bonds with the community, the Partnership hopes to end homelessness as we know it. Want to get involved? Visit the Partnership’s website at http://www.endhomelessnesswake.org/contact/ to find out how you can help.
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Raleigh/Wake Partnership to End and Prevent Homelessness
Created in 2006, The Raleigh/Wake Partnership to End and Prevent Homelessness (Partnership) is the integrated effort of The City of Raleigh and Wake County governments to address the need to end and prevent homelessness. The mission of the Partnership is to strategically lead and engage the community in collaborative efforts to prevent and move people out of homelessness. Its involvement is a combination of three guiding principles: advocacy, convening and communicating. For more information, visit http://www.endhomelessnesswake.org/
Oak City Outreach Center
The Oak City Outreach Center (Center) represents a unique collaboration between local government, private faith-based and advocacy organizations. Owned by the City of Raleigh, the 3,200 square foot facility is directly across from Moore Square in downtown Raleigh. The Center is operated through a collaboration of the Partnership and Catholic Charities. The Center brought community groups together that had never collaborated before to provide meals and other resources for those in Wake County who are unstably housed or homeless. The Center currently serves 400-500 unduplicated persons (men, women, and children) each weekend. It has provided more than 197,000 meals in its first two and a half years of operation.
