How to help fight homelessness all year long

During the holiday season, thoughts turn to those less fortunate. The community works together to stockpile warm clothing and nourishing food for those in need. Individuals write extra checks to support local charities, or make donations in loved ones' names. Adults pass the spirit of giving along by making sure children and young adults have their own opportunities to give back. The generous holiday spirit is the reason so many local nonprofits plan special events that allow people to walk in and volunteer for an hour or two.

We are proud of and heartily encourage the generosity that the holidays inspire, and happy to share ways to ensure your efforts to give back have the greatest positive impact. And we encourage you, if you haven't already, to make giving and volunteering a holiday tradition, and a priority all year long.

In our opinion, no gift or possession brings as much joy as does doing our part to make our community stronger, safer, better and more welcoming for all.

NOT A SEASONAL NEED

Area homeless shelters have extremely limited resources. Many people reach out to homeless shelters or to homeless individuals directly during the holiday season because it makes them feel good. But working with an organized group and volunteering regularly throughout the year is a much more effective way of supporting those who are tackling this complex and persistent community problem.

Throughout the Corridor, homeless shelters and charity groups rely on volunteers to keep their operations running smoothly and their clients served. In many cases such groups could not be as effective or provide for as many without the help of regularly scheduled volunteers.

'Our volunteers are making an investment, and so are we,” explained Mark Sertterh, associate executive director of Shelter House in Iowa City.

The process begins with an application, usually downloaded from the organization's website. Staff members review and then interview the applicant. Local needs, volunteer aspiration and special talents or skills are combined in hope of creating a good fit, one that will benefit the organization and the individual for weeks or months to come.

Once approved, the volunteer receives training, such as learning the basics of trauma-informed care and client confidentiality, so that he or she is better prepared to work on behalf of and alongside those experiencing challenges.

From shelter to shelter, the volunteer process is generally the same. Applicants often need to be of a certain age, and most will undergo a background check.

'Not everyone has a background of working with people who are experiencing homelessness or poverty, and that's OK,” Sertterh said. 'You don't have to have that experience in order to make a difference, so long as you are walking through the door with a positive mind-set. We train people who want to help on how they can be most effective.”

ABUNDANT NEEDS

Nonprofits that provide temporary shelter, food, clothing, job training and numerous other services to those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless have a diverse need for volunteers.

'We have so many opportunities available to those who wish to volunteer,” said Phoebe Trepp, executive director of Willis Dady Emergency Shelter in Cedar Rapids.

'I encourage those interested in volunteering to sit down and really consider their own passions. When we can match those personal passions to volunteer opportunities, that's when we see mutually beneficial arrangements blossom. That's the building block of what we and other organizations need: dedicated and consistent volunteers.”

'When we have a volunteer at our front desk, helping meet the needs of those currently living at the shelter, our paid staff can concentrate on some of the more complicated emergency situations that walk through the front door,” Sertterh said.

Volunteers can help clients find clothing in a certain size or access needed personal hygiene products, for example, while staff members work with a walk-in family that may be facing eviction or needing to access behavioral health services. Meanwhile, other volunteers may be folding laundry, sorting new donations or driving shelter residents to work.

Willis Dady has a nearly constant need for volunteers willing to sleep overnight and be available in case of emergencies. The organization also works with church and other groups to provide Sunday meals to shelter residents.

All shelters benefit from skilled volunteers who can help with facility maintenance or perform computer tasks ranging from data entry to graphic design.

In short, volunteer opportunities abound, making it easy for specific skills and talents to be quickly matched with a need.

Often, shelter staffers say, volunteers are needed the most on minor holidays - Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day. Summer is also a good time to get involved because core volunteers take vacations, organized support groups aren't as active and client families often face additional stress due to school closure.

MATERIAL SUPPORTS

If volunteering isn't right for you, you still can support the important work of eradicating homelessness in our communities. Most shelters and support efforts maintain wish lists of items they need to carry out their mission - be it clothing, personal care items, bedding, bus passes or more. And all organizations are grateful for cash donations, which never spoil and are easily stored. Here again, you can maximize your contribution by making donations a regular part of your routine - by setting up a monthly monetary donation, or making an effort to regularly donate items that are most needed. Make a commitment to buy a box of diapers or a half-dozen tubes of toothpaste every week when you do your grocery shopping, for example, and drop it off at the local shelter on your way home.

To help in Cedar Rapids:

' Foundation 2 Youth Shelter - 3015 12th Avenue SW, foundation2.org, (319) 362-1170

' Mission of Hope - 211 Park Court SE, missionofhopecr.org, (319) 365-0502

' Salvation Army - 1000 C Avenue SW, tsacedarrapids.org, (319) 364-9131

' St. John of the Cross Catholic Worker House - 1027 Fifth Avenue SE, catholicworkerhouse.org, (319) 362-9041

' Waypoint Services (includes Madge Phillips Center) - 318 Fifth Street SE, waypointservices.org, (319) 365-1458

' Willis Dady Prevention & Shelter - 1247 Fourth Avenue SE, willisdady.org, (319) 362-7555

In Iowa City:

' Domestic Violence Intervention Program - 1105 South Gilbert Court, dvipiowa.org, (800) 373-1043

' Salvation Army - 1116 Gilbert Court, icsalvationarmy.org,

' Shelter House - 429 Southgate Avenue, shelterhouseiowa.org, (319) 351-7132

Other:

' Family Promise of Linn County - 310 Fifth Street SE (Cedar Rapids), familypromiseoflinncounty.org, (319) 640-0339

' HACAP - 1515 Hawkeye Drive (Hiawatha), hacap.org, (319) 393-7811

' Johnson County Local Homeless Coordinating Board - 322 East Second Street (Iowa City), jchomeless.org

' United Way of East Central Iowa Volunteer Database - uweci.org/ways-to-give/volunteer