[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 14, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E783-E784]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         TEN YEARS OF SERVICE BY THE INTERFAITH SHELTER NETWORK

                                 ______


                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 14, 1996

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to celebrate 10 years of dedicated 
service by 10,000 volunteers of the Interfaith Shelter Network in San 
Diego County, CA.
  Ten years ago, the Network began as an idea in the minds of several 
people who were trying to resolve some problems of the homeless in the 
region. In 1985, the Network was formed as a joint effort between San 
Diego County community, civic, and religious leaders--and it started on 
a small scale, with approximately a dozen congregations.
  The Network offers 8 to 10 weeks of shelter for each participating 
guest who is referred by a social service agency. Congregations provide 
sleeping accommodations and meals as the guests work on transitional 
plans with their social service agencies to get back into their own 
housing. Participating congregations have developed a family-style 
environment where the volunteers become an important extended family 
for their guests.
  Responding to the need with rapid growth, the Interfaith Shelter 
Network now includes more than 130 Christian, Jewish, and Baha'i 
congregations in seven regions of San Diego County. More than 4,100 
people have been provided with over 81,000 nights of shelter--and more 
than half of the 4,100 guests have left the Network's shelters for 
their own housing. When the program started, many of the people served 
were single men. Two years ago, families became the largest group 
served, as they also became the fastest growing segment of the homeless 
population.
  The Network, administered by the Ecumenical Council of San Diego 
County under the supervision of Executive Director Glenn Allison, began 
its second program in 1990--the Transitional Housing Program. To date, 
this new program has assisted more than 25 families, including 110 
people, with education and counseling.
  The 10th anniversary of the Interfaith Shelter Network will be 
commemorated with an anniversary service and Thank-You Picnic this 
coming Sunday, May 19. On this joyous occasion, I commend the 
Ecumenical Council, the city and county of San Diego, and the many 
private donors who, with their donations and other means of support, 
have made the idea of the Network a reality.
  I commend the guests of this program who have enriched the lives of 
their host congregations and those who, with determination, have left 
the ranks of the homeless.

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  And I commend the thousands of volunteers from the Christian, Jewish, 
and Baha'i communities who, with their generosity of time and spirit, 
have made the Network work.
  So often, we look around at the problems overwhelming our cities and 
despair that nothing can be done. In contrast, the Interfaith Shelter 
Network is an example of how people can make a positive difference in 
their communities.

                          ____________________