Armed with a Passport to Hope, guests traveled to the Oak Harbor Club for the Journey of Hope Gala to benefit the Hope for Families Center and showcase the services it provides to families in crisis.
Event chair Michele Downey noted that six degrees of separation, a social theory that any two people in the world can be connected through a chain of no more than five intermediaries, or six steps, “is a good way to describe how closely tied we really all are.”
“In the end, those communities help shape who we are. In Vero, it’s more like six degrees of Lydia Lander,” Downey added, referencing HFC’s marketing and events director.
Downey said she first became involved with the Hope for Family Center after attending an event through a shared connection, where she learned that one of her son’s classmates was a resident at the shelter.
“She was a lovely little girl who wanted to help everyone in the class and was very sweet to all of the children. Quite a testament to how safe and happy she felt living at the center,” added Downey.
Executive director Marty Mercado chatted with four siblings who had recently transitioned out of the shelter with their mother.
“A lot of people, when we talk about homelessness, have a certain idea in their head of what that looks like,” said Mercado, dispelling that notion by informing that the mother is a third-grade teacher.
When Mercado asked the children why it’s important to support housing stability, they replied, “It helps out families. Every teen deserves a chance to have a home to go back to,” and “It keeps people off the streets.”
After some good-natured bidding on live auction items, John Moore challenged guests with a call to the heart to help fund meals, housing expenses, move-in and stabilization supplies, case management, employment and job placement support, school supplies, children’s education and enrichment programs.
The Hope for Families Center offers a safe, substance-free refuge where homeless families can regain stability and it provides resources to families in need to support long-term success.
Featuring 21 rooms, a library, playground and common areas, the nonprofit ensures that parents and children have their basic needs met while remaining together.
The gala was a perfect prelude to a subsequent ribbon-cutting at HFC’s newly expanded family shelter, fondly dubbed the Miracle on 4th Street. The expansion will help to address the staggering need by doubling its capacity. Nine new one-bedroom transitional apartments will create a bridge toward permanent independence. The expansion also includes an Emergency Family Shelter wing and administration building.
For more information, visit HopeForFamiliesCenter.org.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
