CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – Keeping people out of the cold — that’s the mission of To Our House in the New River Valley.
“We are able to give people that one place where they don’t have to worry about their survival,” Rev. Morris Fleischer said.
Rev. Morris Fleischer is the chair of the To Our House policy council.
He says the overnight program, run by New River Community Action, gives light to the homelessness problem in the New River Valley.
“One of the reasons that we do what we do is rehumanizing folks that have been pushed to the margins of society,” he said. “We use the language of the hospitality industry by calling people our guests. We don’t say ‘Oh that homeless person.’ We don’t want to objectify persons who are just really fighting to survive.”
Guests apply to the program, where if accepted, a different church hosts every few weeks from November until late March.
They’re given a hot meal and a bed to sleep in overnight.
The bed is inside of a tent — bringing a level of privacy most other shelters don’t provide.
“If you can provide food and shelter, people can start looking beyond those immediate survival needs — looking beyond the next 24 to 48 hours,” Fleischer said.
Fleischer says homelessness may look different in the NRV than in big cities but is still just as relevant.
“So many of our guests that come in are not unemployed, they’re just underemployed, they can’t afford an apartment,” he said.
Another part of the program — giving residents the resources they need to succeed.
And for Fleischer, it’s about making sure people going through a rough time know that they are loved.
“You are somebody, your story is meaningful. You have a story, we have a story, and we share that together,” he said.
Click here for more information on To Our House.
There is limited availability, so call (540) 639-3159 for assistance and information on potential approval into the program.
New River Community Action provides a number of other resources for people experiencing homelessness. Their information can be found here.