
DATE: Friday, November 21, 1997             TAG: 9711210654

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY TONY WHARTON, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  117 lines

WINTER MAY BE ESPECIALLY CRUEL FOR SOME ADVOCATES FOR HOMELESS BRACE FOR WORST AS FORMER WELFARE RECIPIENTS LANGUISH.

Welfare is ending for many people, and South Hampton Roads has felt the first frost of the season. Those two events have pastors and shelter operators wondering how many more homeless and needy people they'll see in the coming months.

There is no clear pattern yet. There are some indicators:

The Suffolk Shelter for the Homeless has taken in 177 people so far this year, compared with 124 for all of 1996.

Churches report that they are receiving many more calls for assistance of all kinds. First Lutheran Church in Norfolk estimates it is receiving six to 10 calls for assistance a week, two to three times more than a year ago.

It's difficult to determine how many homeless people are in the area. Some officials say there are around 2,000.

As the state begins moving people off welfare and into the work force, some are expected to stumble on the way. Churches, synagogues, volunteers and local agencies probably will have to catch those who fall, and they're bracing for the winter.

Those in shelters and on the streets are certain things will get worse.

Laura Blanton, 39, has a home in a trailer park near the Judeo-Christian Outreach Center on Virginia Beach Boulevard near Birdneck Road. She has a housekeeping job, too. But Thursday night, the meatball subs and salad being served up at the center by volunteers from St. Nicholas Catholic Church were just the extra help she and her two young sons needed.

``I think things are going to be a lot worse this winter,'' she said. ``I think a lot more people are going to be on the streets.''

Sandi Piercealle, 42, lives in one of the center's 50 shelter units and works in the kitchen. She said she has noticed more people coming in every night, and more young people with children.

Lee Green helps coordinate a network of churches, synagogues and community groups in Norfolk called the Norfolk Emergency Shelter Team, or NEST. One sign she's looking for is more families showing up at shelters.

``In the past, we've had families who just needed help until the next check came in,'' Green said. ``I'm worried that this year there's not going to be that check coming in at the end of the month.''

Mary Louis Campbell, who heads a task force established by Norfolk Mayor Paul D. Fraim to address and monitor the issue, said: ``We are concerned about a number of families who were self-sufficient before, but barely. They were fragile and now may not able to sustain their independence.

``Our anticipation is that every population that's marginal or borderline, that's been receiving government support, is at risk.''

Brenda Galen, director of the Suffolk shelter, said a family of eight left one day recently, and a family of seven showed up the next day.

Churches and synagogues in South Hampton Roads coordinate to support several shelters and food programs.

NEST sets up a shelter at a different house of worship each week during the winter. The Winter Shelter Task Force in Virginia Beach soon will open a day services center for the homeless at 17th Street.

The Judeo-Christian Outreach Center, supported by 93 churches, synagogues and community groups, feeds the needy year-round. The churches not only support the center financially; all send volunteers to serve meals as well.

Richard Powell, the center's executive director, said he has not yet noticed any difference with the end of welfare, although the center has trained several welfare recipients for new jobs.

``I've been doing this for 12 years, and I don't see a lot of fluctuation, really,'' he said. ``We feed pretty much the same number of people every night, and we have the same number of people looking for shelter.''

Elaine Riewerts, 50, is a resident at the center while she recovers from a disability that has required several surgeries on her neck. She said she has noticed several young women, some with children of their own, coming in for shelter and assistance.

``They're just starting their lives out, and they're starting it at a shelter,'' she said. ``It just doesn't make sense.''

In addition to shelter, people are looking for help with bus tickets, prescriptions and child care, things that many of us take for granted but can become major worries for someone homeless or in need.

``Let's say you do get a job,'' Galen said. ``If you do, then do you have a ride? And do you have someone to take care of your child?''

Many of those working in this support network say they don't necessarily think ending welfare is a bad thing, and they like the idea of communities helping their own.

The Rev. Jim Cobb of First Lutheran Church in Norfolk said churches always have done a better job helping people within their congregations.

``If everyone were a member of a religious community, then those religious communities could take care of people more,'' he said. ``And I don't mean that membership is a requirement. I mean that we could help much better if we had a relationship instead of a disconnect.

``I don't know; I wish I had an answer. I know that people need much more than charity. They need relationships, friendships, long-term help.''

``I don't want there to be one huge agency that you go to for us to assess your needs and decide where you go,'' Green said. ``The beauty of soup kitchens and shelters and food pantries scattered throughout the city is that they're staffed by volunteers, lovely people who run the gamut of diversity themselves.

``The good thing about churches and synagogues picking up that slack is that, at least occasionally, we'll stop to pay attention to that person, that face.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]

NHAT MEYER/The Virginian-Pilot

Daniel Parks receives his meal from volunteers at the

Judeo-Christian Outreach Center in Virginia Beach on Thursday

evening.

NHAT MEYER/The Virginian-Pilot

Laura Blanton of Virginia Beach and her sons, Adam, 4, right, and

John, 7, visit the Judeo-Christian Outreach Center in Virginia Beach

on Thursday. They are not homeless, but they visit the center

regularly. Support groups say more families are doing the same this

this year.

CONTACTING THE GROUPS

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