The House of Yahweh Transitional Shelter Program is closed. We are working to build new programs of support for the homeless who come to our door for help. To be homeless is tragic; not to have a safe place to "hang one's hat", a place of refuge, a place of privacy. In a small way, HOY South Bay Outreach, with its supporters, is reaching out trying to help people by referring them to other shelters and sometimes just listening to a person's story knowing that there is nothing we can do for them except offering them words of hope and encouragement. Let us remember that it is a corporal work of mercy to "shelter the homeless".

What Conditions May Lead to Homelessness?

Reasons for homelessness may include those listed below.  There are many other reasons why people end up on the streets and need assistance not mentioned here.

• Abandonment - a spouse leaves (usually the bread winner) and the other is left with children and little possibility of paying the rent and bills.
  
• No family back up—some parents "kick" their children out of their house once they reach 18 or graduate from high school and tell them to get out on their own.
• Sickness - Sometimes a person is abandoned because the spouse can't take care of the illness, or one of the parents experiences a long illness that eats up the finances.
  
• No health insurance - this is total disaster, especially if a member of the family is suffering from a terminal disease over a long period of time.
  
• Loss of a job or long term unemployment or long worker strikes can cause loss of homes, evictions, etc.
  
• Catastrophic disasters or accidents touch all areas of society causing immediate reversals of fortune. Some people are covered by insurance or have a bank roll for backup; others are less fortunate.
  

Our homeless support programs include:

• Clothing and Personal Care Outreach  –  If you need help, come and ask. We will do our best.
• Food Outreach  –  If you are hungry and come to our door we will give you food to sustain you.
  
• Mail Outreach  –  Need a permanent address when important documents can be mailed or delivered? We will receive them and keep them safe until they can be picked up.
• Social Service Support  –  Caring and dedicated support to help you through a rough patch. Our social service coordinators will help you, step by step, to understand and attempt to solve the problem. Things like lost identification, lost benefit cards, difficult government application forms, finding shelter, and many more are handled quickly.