Florida Catholic | Homeless Day Resource Center

Giving help, giving hope

Catholic Charities takes over the management of homeless center.

CHRISSY CUTTITA | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 02.15.08

Ed Cashman works the check–in desk at the Homeless Day Resource Center in Panama City. The center is now operated in partnership with Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida’s Panama City regional office.
CHRISSY CUTTITA | FC

PANAMA CITY | “Walk the talk” is a common phrase in casual conversation. Tony Jones was walking all right, and talking, but the two weren’t aligned to a set of values and didn’t add up to much of a life. He wasn’t living on the streets, but that past life was like being in hell, he said.

Then Jones found someone to help him examine his problems and offer sound solutions to get him on his own feet; to do what was needed to succeed once again, or in his words, “walk the talk.” He found Catholic Charities through the Homeless Day Resource Center located beside Panama City’s Rescue Mission, where Jones struggled for survival just a year ago.

Not only does he now believe his future is promising but so are the futures of others due to a recent organizational change at the center.

Catholic Charities assumed management of the Homeless Day Resource Center, a “one-stop shop for the homeless,” Feb. 1.

“We are committed to providing the kind of help that creates hope in an individual’s ability to trust in his own talents and power, and become self-sufficient and self-directed,” said Diane Williams, director of Catholic Charities’ Panama City regional office.

The center began as a pilot project of the Homeless and Hunger Coalition in September 2005 to provide a daytime resource and respite center where area homeless could access coalition services and seek assistance from other service providers, including government agencies and community-based social services.

“The coalition has been successful in creating the foundation for the (Homeless Day Resource Center) and it is time to turn over the day-to-day operation to a direct-service agency that can sustain and manage this growth,” said Laurie Combs, Homeless and Hunger Coalition president.

For clients, the change could mean availability to an increased staff of caseworkers and counselors.

“Catholic Charities takes a holistic approach to people,” said Jones. “(At the Rescue Mission) it was good to hear the word of God but I needed to clear up my mind and body to absorb the information. The social workers at (the Homeless Day Resource Center) hone in on listening skills.”

Those skills are essential to peeling back the many layers a client’s problem may have, Jones said. With a case manager at hand, Catholic Charities can point clients to the right resources they need to succeed.

In Jones’ case, he was a well-known professional counselor in Mississippi before some decisions that cost him his career, his home, his credibility and livelihood. According to him, those consequences were devastating. A friend in Panama City told him where to go to get help.
“I’ve been rebuilding and keeping focus on where I need to be,” said Jones about his everyday life, living in a boarding house provided by Catholic Charities at affordable cost. “I know I didn’t belong at the mission, I had to be somewhere and focus on what I need to do.”

Williams and Combs agree that the center’s ability to provide case management, crisis intervention and clinical programs to the homeless will be strengthened under the management of Catholic Charities.

“Having this coordinating service here has been a tremendous help to moving our clients on to self-reliance. Each agency does what it does best. It’s a win-win for the agencies and the clients”, said the Rev. Billy Fox, Rescue Mission director.

While the Christian organization of the Rescue Mission offers faith-based support, Catholic Charities offered a “bridge over the gap between the secular and spiritual world,” said Jones. He said what all clients need to develop on their own is that want to recover, no matter what, and he credits center staff for getting people to that place in life.

“You have to teach people how to live in this world here before they get to that world up there,” he said. “It’s a slow process. Everyday is a learning experience. You grow a little at a time and you’ve got to be diligent in your efforts.”

A change in lifestyle and a move away from the same old crowd, much like St. Paul preached in his letters, is the way recovery will happen according to Jones, who continues to work on putting that talk into practice.

The Panama City office is one of four regional offices that are part of Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida, spanning the area from Pensacola to Tallahassee. With a food pantry, Thrift Store, transitional residence for families and an affordable boarding facility for single men, nearly 10,000 individuals have been assisted in the six-county area since 2006.

The Homeless Day Resource Center serves between 80 and 120 individuals each day and is open seven days a week. More than 40 people have moved to self-sufficiency since Nov. 1 through the efforts of center staff and coalition member agencies. n

Endnote: Call 850-215-9066 to learn more about the work of the Homeless Day Resource Center.

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