MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -
The faces of Montgomery's homeless population have changed.
Directors of local organizations say women and children make up nearly half of the homeless in Montgomery.
The problem? There aren't enough shelters to house these families until now.
Najah Veasley knows being at Mary Ellen's Hearth is good for her and her twin daughters.
"I've had a peace of mind since I've been here."
Veasley considers herself lucky having never been out on the streets.
But she is a single mom...in school. Trying to pay for the family's rent and utilities--with no income--seemed nearly impossible.
That's when she learned about Mary Ellen's hearth--a newly opened shelter in the Nellie Burge Community Center. It's designed to help women with children get back on their feet.
"I had to put my pride aside and kinda say 'ok, I have to make a stable life for my children.'"
Living there, Veasley's has time to finish school and live in an environment that ensures she'll succeed when she leaves.
"They are also provided life skills training, we give assistance in getting a job, we have volunteer CPAs coming in to teach them budgeting," says Director Debbie Dobbins.
Dobbins runs the shelter. She says 10 families can stay there for up to two years.
They call it transitional living with one goal.
"Working toward self-sufficiency," says Dobbins.
If you step inside one of the shelter rooms you'll quickly see everything is very pristine. In fact, the furniture is brand new. There's a reason for that.
"We want them to feel good about themselves and feel like they deserve to live with new things and clean things," says Dobbins.
"Like home...it feels like home here," adds Veasley.
Veasley couldn't be happier, knowing her family will benefit in the long run from this shelter's services.
Shelter directors say they've been flooded with roughly 15 referrals per day.
Copyright 2012 WSFA 12 News. All rights reserved.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WSFA, a Raycom Media Station.
