It’s that time of year again! Soon the kids will be back in school, Fall will be upon us, and before you know it, it will be Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Here is a quick description of this important national awareness campaign from the About section on the campaign website:
“As the holidays approach, people take time to consider what they’re thankful for and many choose to donate some of their time, attention, and resources to others. In that spirit of giving, each year the National Coalition for the Homeless and the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness sponsor Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week during the week prior to Thanksgiving.
Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week is designed to educate the public, draw attention to the problem of poverty, and build up the base of volunteers and supporters for local anti-poverty agencies. Groups spend this week generating publicity about hunger and homelessness and holding a series of events to engage their communities.
This amazing event was first held at Villanova University in 1975. This year, more than 700 colleges, high schools, and community groups across the country will come together during this week to raise awareness about the pressing issues of hunger and homelessness.”
MDHA is teaming up with Faith Forward Dallas at Thanksgiving Square on a number of events/initiatives for that week:
- Preaching About Homelessness – We will ask Faith Forward Dallas members, as well as other clergy to use their sermons during Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week to educate their congregations on how they can help end homelessness.
- New Case Manager Bootcamp… for Clergy – This is a “wear your walking shoes” kind of training. We tour the J. Erik Jonsson Public Library, The Bridge, Family Gateway, The Stewpot, Austin Street Center, and CitySquare. It is designed for new case managers, or case managers new to homeless services, who wish to learn more about housing, shelter and services for our homeless friends, within our Continuum of Care (CoC). Through this bootcamp, clergy will learn more about what is being done in Dallas to prevent and end homelessness, from the “boots on the ground,” perspective.
- Daily Devotional Booklet – The Housing Sub-Committee of the Civic Engagement Committee will develop a booklet of daily devotionals around homelessness, contributed by clergy of different faiths, and distributed to Dallas congregations, for use during Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week.
If your organization is holding any events for that week, make sure you register them on the Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week site, and let us know too, so we can share the news. More details to come, so stay tuned!
