Valdese to bring homeless BUCM services

The rising homeless population has multiple sides, but Valdese and local organizations are looking at the issue from all standpoints to find solutions. This includes transporting homeless individuals from the town to Burke United Christian Ministries.

Starting Thursday, Aug. 29, a group of homeless individuals will be waiting at Jethro’s Community and Discipleship Center, at 209 Church St. NW in Valdese, to ride along to BUCM. Jethro’s has now become a safe haven for homeless individuals during special planned events like this one.

Around 11 a.m. every week on Thursday, these groups will be transported to the center for food, counseling, hygiene care, and laundry services. 

Valdese Police Chief Marc Sharpe, one of the main organizers, said that they are still looking for local drivers to be a part of the weekly trips. These trips are tackling two of the various obstacles that the homeless face — lack of transportation and access to resources.

“This is a really great opportunity,” WPCOG Program Manager Chasity Houck said. “The community coming together to get connected to those services.”

Houck said that this is a new program and foresees its success.

On the BUCM side, Recovery Community Center Director Karen Russell said that she is personally excited for this new program that will bring more eastern Burke County individuals to their services.

“One person matters,” Russell said. “We would be happy to see 20 people. If it’s just one person, it’s one more we didn’t connect with before. … I love the fact that this is happening.”

Along with the transportation program, the police department is collaborating with the Burke County Sheriff’s Office to secure vacant properties marked as problematic. One property, 1403 Carolina St. SE, now has a no-trespassing sign outside and will be periodically checked for unauthorized people.

Officers are also trained on Narcan administration and are distributing it within areas in town, affected by addiction. Officers have on hand Burke County Public Health Department personal cards with a QR code that an individual can scan and request Narcan assistance.

These ongoing efforts are in collaboration with the following organizations:

• Western Piedmont Council of Government’s Homeless Response Team
• Drug and Homelessness Task Force
• Helping Achieve Recovery through Burke Opioid Use Reduction (HARBOUR) programs
• Local churches

Access to these partnerships and their services could potentially help these homeless individuals off the streets.

To help spreading the word about these resources, Jethro’s is hosting a luncheon catered by Chick-fil-A on Monday, Aug. 26, at 11 a.m. Leadership will hand out flyers advertising the weekly trips. 

IDENTIFYING INDIVIDUALS

Working on the street level, Houck and her four team members work within the community to identify homeless individuals. Her team serves 24 municipalities from Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, and Catawba counties.

They make contact with these individuals by checking in with libraries, nonprofits, and local agencies like the Valdese Police Department. They also leave contact cards with local businesses and organizations that identify individuals.

Houck said that her team helps the unhoused find shelter, food, and mental health resources. Staying in frequent contact can be a challenge, but the WPCOG is continuously navigating this issue.

MULTIPLE SIDES

Sharpe explained that the homeless issue can be seen through a social and criminal lens, and they are working through solutions from all standpoints.

“These are multifaceted problems that need to be addressed from many angles and as you can see, we are developing partnerships to work hand in hand with the VPD to combat these issues,” Sharpe said.

He noted that they want to help connect the homeless with needed resources yet will not hesitate to address criminal behavior.

“We are just not not charging them, but if the crime is them being unsheltered, we have to work together on the underlying problem,” Sharpe said. “We are trying to attempt to solve our drug, overdose, and unsheltered issues … as a task force, we ask ourselves, what can we do to solve these? These are social and crime issues.”

The WPCOG and the police department started with 18 identified individuals. Three have been placed in homes. One has been placed in a job. Two have committed suicide.

They will continue to reach out to the homeless population and change their lives, Sharpe said.