New monthly program will deal with homelessness

More than ever, people who never thought it could happen have become homeless.

In answer to the problem, Lake County Haven, a Libertyville nonprofit organization that provides shelter and other services to women and their children, is launching a new monthly program called Kitchen Conversations to help deal with the situation.

The program will feature small gatherings at the Haven's main shelter in downtown Libertyville.

Guests at the Haven's kitchen table will learn about homelessness: what causes it and how it affects local women and children. Over cups of coffee or tea, they'll talk about the challenge of ending homelessness in our lifetime.

The one-hour events are free and open to the public. Kitchen Conversations began March 21 and will be held monthly. Visit www.lakecountyhaven.org for a schedule or to sign up.

There are more than 600,000 people who are homeless each night in the United States, said Laura Sabino, executive director of the Lake County Haven. Often, homelessness is precipitated by domestic violence, catastrophic illness, and drug or alcohol addiction. But these days, a “new face” of homelessness is emerging.

“We are seeing women who have had long careers in their profession, who have college educations, who owned homes, whose lives have been stable and successful up until this point,” Sabino said.

“These people are so beaten down by where they've landed, often their best friends and family don't know they are staying in a shelter. The shame they feel is palpable by all.”

One thing that hasn't changed is the need for community involvement to provide immediate shelter to the most vulnerable families and to work on the big picture of ending homelessness.

With “Kitchen Conversations,” Sabino hopes to draw civic-minded people to the Haven's kitchen table to talk about what others can do — locally and nationally — to eradicate homelessness, even in the midst of a weak economy.

This new initiative was born out of the German tradition of coffee klatches from the late 1800s, Sabino explained.

“I grew up in a neighborhood with a lot of recent European immigrants,” she said. “My mother used to host coffee klatches to gather together the neighbors and discuss community issues that were of interest to all of them.”

Sabino thought that idea would translate well to Lake County, and that discussing homelessness as it is manifesting itself today would be a natural topic given the economic concerns on everyone's minds. And, as in any home, the kitchen is the de facto gathering place, she said.

“People come to the kitchen to discuss their day, to express their worries for their kids, to complain about their stresses, and so much more,” Sabino said.

“Now, we'd like to invite people to our table to brainstorm ways we can make a real impact on ending homelessness in our community.”

For the past 20 years, Lake County Haven has provided shelter and services to 26 women and children each day. People who are homeless, and the agencies that serve them, are being “squeezed” from every direction, Sabino said.

The numbers of homeless people are increasing. And the services the government and community once provided are no longer there for the people who need them, Sabino said.

Yet, the Haven has not decreased, but has increased services during the weak economy. Services were increased about 30 percent at the start of the recession and, despite the pressures on the agency, the staff and board of directors refuse to eliminate even one bed.

“If we can't be there for people now, what good are we?” asked board President Ken P. Neumann. “Now is the time that women and kids need us, and so we will fill every bed we have and stretch our staff and volunteers to the limit in order to be there for the people who need us.”

Every bed in the shelter and in the longer-term housing program has been full every day, almost without exception, and the women who live there are so grateful that such an organization exists. They come to the Haven because they have run out of choices, Sabino said.

The alternative is sleeping in a park or at a bus stop. They come looking for a place to sleep and three meals a day, she said, but they discover much more. The Haven provides counseling, advocacy and case management services that help women to turn their lives around.

“My case manager held my hand when I was scared,” one resident said. “She pushed me when I was stuck. She gave me resources and ideas when I had none. And she believed in me when I didn't believe in myself.”