HELENA — The Good Samaritan Ministries of Helena is doing its best through grants, to help those experiencing homelessness find a warm and safe place to seek shelter from storms.
“This grant through Rocky Mount Development Council (RMDC), which has been our partner all this time to make sure people had a place to go, they were off the streets if the shelter was too full. We were able to help them with a room in a hotel,” said Theresa Ortega, the Executive Director of Good Samaritan of Helena.
Ortega says that through the grant with RMDC the organization was able to find warm places for those who are homeless to stay. Now they are implementing a new position to find people who require medical care and safe housing.
"What we're doing right now is we are we will continue to work with Rocky and during this time with Rocky, we also wrote for another grant with the emergency solution funds for a street outreach position,” said Ortega.
This position will be on the streets to find out the needs of those who are homeless and refer them to adequate programs that can help them.
In the future, Good Samaritan hopes to find an outdoor living space for those experiencing homelessness, like the outdoor living area in Missoula.
“When that money is gone to have a place to be, whether it's an outdoor setting, whether it's a hotel setting, we're looking for, something, a piece of property, a building so that we can help people during these winter months,” said Ortega.
Ortega hopes to have people experiencing homelessness find a warm shelter, the possibility of employment, and a place where they do not have to worry about contracting COVID-19.
