A few months ago, Governor Gregoire signed onto painfully deep budget cuts with the stated hope that faith communities and nonprofits across the state would serve as the effective backstop for people in poverty who can no longer depend on state services.
It is a challenge that speaks to the very heart of all religious faiths, a fundamental commitment to help those in need. In this community, congregations have for generations been deeply involved in providing basic services to the hungry, homeless and vulnerable.
But the current dimension of cuts, layoffs and downsizing are beyond anything we have seen in recent experience.
More drastic and damaging waves are approaching, and even more people will be pushed to the brink.
Faith communities now find themselves on the frontlines, scrambling to expand their capacity to deal with desperate people coming to the doors of churches, synagogues and temples seeking short-term assistance to keep them from slipping into homelessness and destitution.
In response, local faith communities large and small are organizing in new ways. They are seeking each other out and exploring ways to coordinate in order to efficiently serve the greatest number of people and avoid duplication of efforts. They are marshalling volunteers and in-kind contributions. They are working cooperatively with government to plug the holes as effectively as possible. They are raising awareness among their congregants and others in the wider community about the nature and scope of the crisis. And they are taking these steps with a purposeful determination sustained by the values and teachings of their respective faiths.
Just this month, Interfaith Works, a coalition of faith communities founded in 1974, opened a volunteer-operated centralized intake center for homeless men and women. With modest funding from the City of Olympia and the support of many area congregations, the new program, called “SideWalk”, will offer assessment, referral, shelter and housing placement, and light case management services to childless, homeless adults. Interfaith Works has joined with two other local agencies providing critical services to the homeless – Family Support Center and Community Youth Services – to form an Olympia Homeless Prevention Partnership to better coordinate their services and leverage new resources.
This is the new face of faith community engagement in Thurston County, and it is coming at a crucial moment when innovative, creative approaches are needed.
As congregations expand their collective capacities and capabilities to address social needs, there is an additional benefit that enriches the whole community: diverse faiths working together harmoniously and building warm, respectful relations with each other. The emphasis on partnership and collaboration among people of faith serves as a positive model at a time when social and cultural divisions and conflict weigh on our society.
As a new round of daunting budget cuts looms, local faith communities are determined to do what they can to fill the holes and make a crucial difference for those in greatest need.
Daniel Kadden is the executive director of Interfaith Works. Perspective is coordinated by Interfaith Works in cooperation with The Olympian. The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily endorsed by Interfaith Works or The Olympian.
