Janesville shelter proves timely for homeless man

By GAZETTE STAFF Monday, Dec. 24, 2007

JANESVILLE — A new shelter for homeless men is coming none too soon for a local man who lost his lodging just before Christmas.

The 39-year-old came to the Janesville Police Department on Saturday.

He told an officer that he had been staying with a friend in Janesville, but the friend was expecting relatives for the holidays, and there was no longer room for him.

He had been laid off from a local manufacturer but was hopeful of finding work soon, he said.

He told the officer he had not eaten in more than a day.

It’s a typical tale, the kind the police encounter year ’round, said police Lt. Keith Lawver.

Sometimes, the man is passing through, and the police give him a voucher for a bus ticket. Sometimes, it’s a family that has run out of gas, and police provide a voucher for fuel.

Sometimes, it’s someone who hasn’t eaten or doesn’t have a place to stay, and police provide vouchers for food and lodging, which was what happened in this case.

The Salvation Army—so conspicuous this season with its bell-ringers and red kettles—provides the vouchers, Lawver said.

The man said he intended to go to the new homeless shelter tonight, so police issued him a voucher for a two-night stay, as well as a voucher for a meal at a restaurant.

Until now, Janesville hasn’t had a shelter for single homeless men, although the Salvation Army has helped with its motel vouchers. Members of a Rock County task force on homelessness estimate there are 15 to 30 homeless men in Janesville.

A group of churches recently agreed to house homeless men from 7 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. daily, November through April, on a rotating basis.

St. John Vianney Church will be the first to take in the homeless, starting tonight.

TO HELP

Volunteers are needed to keep the churches’ homeless shelter running. If you want to help or contribute, call Paul Benish at (608) 751-7848.

TO GET HELP

Show up at St. John Vianney Church, 1245 Clark St., Janesville. Check-in is 7-10 p.m. at the church. A police escort is required after 10 p.m.

Before you post a comment, consider this:

Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy Agreement

Keep it clean. Comments that are obscene, vulgar or sexually oriented will be removed. Creative spelling of such terms or implied use of such language is banned, also.
Don't threaten to hurt or kill anyone.
Be nice. No racism, sexism or any other sort of -ism that degrades another person.
Harassing comments. If you are the subject of a harassing comment or personal attack by another user, do not respond in-kind. Hit the "Suggest Removal" button on offensive comments.
Share what you know. Give us your eyewitness accounts, background, observations and history.
Do not libel anyone. Libel is writing something false about someone that damages that person's reputation.
Ask questions. What more do you want to know about the story?
Stay focused. Keep on the story's topic.
Help us get it right. If you spot a factual error or misspelling, email newsroom@gazettextra.com or call 1-800-362-6712.
Remember, this is our site. We set the rules, and we reserve the right to remove any comments that we deem inappropriate.

Post Comment

Commenting requires registration.

News:

Opinion:

Blogs | Columns | Political Cartoons | Polls

Sports:

Multimedia:

Community:

Births | Couples | Obituaries | Death Notices

Blogs

Blog List | Latest Blog Entries

Services:

Copyright ©2007 Bliss Communications Inc. All rights reserved. Use of this material and this site are subject to the GazetteExtra Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Content may not be published, broadcast, re-distributed or re-written.