Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum of Care

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Donate a Golden Corral Meal for Opportunity Place
You can now donate a Golden Corral Meal for Opportunity place and they will deliver the meal for you. The cost is $77.00. Click here to pay online >>

Breaking News!

SUPPORT OF THE MUSCOGEE CREEK TRIBE

Ginny Barr, representatives from COPE Center, and the newspaper joined just about the entire Opportunity, Inc. staff on a trip to meet with the Creek leaders and get a glimpse of the crisis this tribe, and their neighbors, find themselves in. It was a memorable day, one that will remain inspirational for years to come. Full Story

POINT IN TIME

It will be at least a month or possibly more before we have an exact count from the surveys taken Friday-Saturday, January 29-30 (we go from mid-day to mid-day for our 24 hours). But the stories coming in already are powerful:

Families and individuals are not just squatting in abandoned houses, barns and buildings – but are living on the rooftops. They use trees to hang their tarps, and remain invisible to those checking out the vacated structures.
Not only are individuals sheltering and feeding up to 25 homeless people per night at their own expense, but some law enforcement agencies are bringing the homeless to them. These are not wealthy individuals, and the cost of doing what they feel is right is putting them on the edge of homelessness themselves.
Through the use of Spanish translators provided by Trinity United Methodist Church, we have made contact with Hispanic homeless, and Spanish-only families caught between domestic abuse and life on the streets. Shelter House has a Spanish interpreter, and we have been making referrals.
Families are more creative than ever before when trying to keep their children shielded from the elements. They travel from one 24/7 store or fast-food restaurant to another, park behind motels and cover themselves with laundry so as to look like motel guests, and “fix-up” abandoned buildings with a variety of boards and scrap materials.

Because there are so many “long-form” surveys coming in, it will take some weeks to enter them all into our database and check for duplication, but we look forward to having hard data with which to direct services, and to drive our strategic plan this year.

COLD NIGHT REPORT

We are very fortunate to have a large number of cold night providers this year. The City of DeFuniak Springs was added to the roster, when it opened the community center and staffed it with County Emergency Response Team members, the Red Cross, and volunteers from First Baptist Church and other faith-based churches and agencies. The cold night shelters in Crestview have been open nearly every night this winter. Churches in Fort Walton Beach have been bursting at the seams, and have been opening early often. We are deeply grateful for everyone who has been a shield between those living in the open, and the harsh winter conditions. All of this continues to highlight the need for permanent emergency shelters, where homeless persons can not only get out of the rain, cold and wind, but can access the services to provide permanent solutions to homelessness.

OPPORTUNITY PLACE

Before last week, Annabelle had been our youngest resident , joining us at the age of 8 days. Last week, however, we welcomed our first newborn, a little boy born to one of our shelter residents. Hope and life are constant residents at Opportunity Place. Six adults started full-time jobs with good pay and benefits the past two weeks, and two families have transitioned into permanent housing. CC Fearson and Lydia Barton work miracles each day, and cannot be commended enough.

HOMELESS PREVENTION/RAPID REHOUSING

The invoice we submitted the end of December has completed all rounds of state review, and went to the Department of Financial services the week of January 25. We expect payment by the end of this week. Staff in Crestview, Walton County and Fort Walton Beach have been processing applications, and we are ready to begin releasing checks the moment our check arrives. Please stay tuned to this site to find out when the funds arrive, and our schedules for screening, applications, and check disbursement.

Past Breaking News Stories >>

Please help us continue to grow, learn, and serve the most fragile of our neighbors. Call 226-7694 to volunteer, click here to see how to help, or click here to donate. You will be blessed no matter which option you choose.

Check out our "Road Map for Success" and see where you fit in. We also have Wish List for Opportunity Place with items needed as of September 26th and a Shelter Donor Meal Calendar, where churches, organizations, and individuals can sign up to bring a meal to the shelter. Click here to view photos of our shelter and the recent wedding!

Building Community Support	Stand Down Success	A Word From Our Sponsors

Okaloosa and Walton Counties are opening their hearts to Opportunity Place. Churches, civic groups, the School District, and private individuals are donating meals, tutoring, children's programs, and filling our wish list in leaps and bounds. Men and women walk off the street with boxes of the items on our wish list. More >>	Last year, we served over 115 vets, providing a meal, winter gear, linkage to benefits, flu shots, and misdemeanor court resolution. This year we pledged to be bigger and better. Under the terrific coordination from Cathy Magnuson of the DAV, we really delivered. 144 homeless men and women came for services, of whom 75% were veterans. They received a meal, winter gear, showers, laundry service, haircuts, medical and dental exams, minor dental restoration, flu shots, pneumonia shots, tetanus shots, mental health screening, misdemeanor court resolution, benefit linkage, and more. Congratulations to all who made this a model for Stand Downs throughout the state.	The holidays brought out a spirit a giving from many generous hearts, and our homeless friends and neighbors benefited tremendously. One of our most generous donors was the BBVA Compass Bank, who combined corporate funds and local contributions to provide us with $3,600 in funds, and coupons good for 75 meals. Compass has changed corporate owners, but has not changed its commitment to the community, and to the highest ideals of customer service. More >>


Okaloosa Walton Homeless Continuum Care / Opportunity, Inc.
Opportunity, Inc. (Admin Office) 203 Cloverdale Boulevard, Suite B Fort Walton Beach, FL 32547 Phone: (850) 409-3070 Fax: (850) 409-3071 info@okaloosawaltonhomeless.org	Opportunity Place 305 Lovejoy Road Fort Walton Beach, FL 32548 Phone: (850) 659-3190 Fax: (850) 659-3191