Tom Burnham’s Letter to the Editor
Our Community Relations Officer Tom Burnham wrote this Letter to the Editor of STL Today:
McClellan: Life on the fringes persists, but good people are here to help
Bill McClellan – our featured speaker at our “Deal Me In” fundraiser – is continuing to shower PPCS with public support. He wrote this thoughtful newspaper column on men who are homeless in which he highlights the services of PPCS. Please take a few minutes to read and share this reflection with friends and colleagues if you are so moved. Bill has for many decades been a friend to PPCS, Tom Burnham, and the men we serve. We are so fortunate to have his support.
Labre Center is cooking up independence!
Please take a moment to check out this great St. Louis Review article about our Labre Center’s cooking class.
https://www.archstl.org/labre-center-cooking-club-helps-with-life-skills-7031
Thanks Missouri MERS Goodwill
A huge thank you to MERS Missouri Goodwill Industries for supporting our unhoused neighbors with donated vouchers. This giveaway is above and beyond the already incredibly generous support and outreach that MERS Goodwill takes part in.
July Update
TO OUR AMAZING FAMILY OF DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS:
We cannot thank you enough for your commitment to Peter & Paul Community Services. Your time and talents throughout the years have made us who we are, and for some of our programs, you have been the driving force that enables us to serve thousands of community members each year. We are grateful for the patience you’ve given us as we navigate through these uncertain times.
OUR PLAN MOVING FORWARD:
- Our Meals Hall program is continuing to serve meals by utilizing partnerships with organizations that have commercial kitchens.
- Our emergency men’s shelter will continue to be open 24/7. With that care comes the responsibility to provide 3 daily meals. We are graciously accepting donations of meals, either prepackaged or via local restaurants.
>> At this time, in-person volunteering is still suspended. Should you be so inclined, here are some wonderful ways to safely serve our clients and patrons.
- In-kind donations are being accepted, as long as the items are NEW and in UNOPENED packaging.
- If you order ANYTHING on Amazon, link your account to us on Amazon Smile!
– Search Peter & Paul Community Services to benefit us.
- Donate specifically to Meals/Shelter
Our cost varies depending on details, but here are some estimations…
– 1 meal for 1 person (meals/shelter) = $5
– 1 dinner for our entire Shelter, currently = $150
– 1 dinner for our entire Meals program, currently = $500
- Write a thank-you note to one of our many amazing staff members! Download the Word file below, and print on your home printer!
Mail to:
Peter and Paul Community Services
care of Kati Ballard Hoffman
2612 Wyoming
Saint Louis, MO 63118
Download Thank You Note
- Become PPCS Facebook Ambassador: Add our custom frame to your profile picture
- Edit your profile photo
- Click “Add Frame”
- Search “Peter & Paul”
For details or questions on this plan, moving forward, please contact Kati Hoffman: kbhoffman@ppcsinc.org or (417) 693-7304 (text is best)
WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING:
- All staff are wearing masks during their shifts. PPCS has procured enough masks and face coverings for all clients and staff.
- Our programs have implemented accountability procedures for clients who want to move into our programs during a limited window of time.
- Our Soulard Shelter, which is typically open overnight, is now 24/7.
- Temperatures of all our clients and staff are being checked at least once per day.
- Our staff deep clean all facilities regularly. We are educating our clients on proper hygiene and cleaning protocols.
- Residents at our housing and shelter programs are largely sheltering in place, with group outings being monitored closely to ensure adequate face mask usage and hand washing hygiene.
- Educational groups led by clinical staff at all programs are socially distancing as much as possible.
- Our Meals Program, which usually serves as many as 200 meals daily from the 2nd through the 21st of each month, has changed from congregate meals in the parish hall to distributing sack lunches by our staff, outside the building. We have also rented an outdoor hand washing station for clients to use.
- With the shelter in place order, all-volunteer opportunities have been temporarily suspended.
- Staff members are covering many extra hours every day, preparing additional meals, and doing all the other tasks usually done by our generous volunteers. In order to compensate the staff for their increased workload and dedication to our clients, we have instituted temporary incentive pay for essential front-line employees.
Thank you for your support of PPCS and our programs and services during this time.
June Update
TO OUR AMAZING FAMILY OF DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS:
We cannot thank you enough for your commitment to Peter & Paul Community Services. Your time and talents throughout the years have made us who we are, and for some of our programs, you have been the driving force that enables us to serve thousands of community members each year. We are grateful for the patience you’ve given us as we navigate through these uncertain times.
OUR PLAN MOVING FORWARD:
- Our Meals Hall program is continuing our partnership with Butler’s Pantry to serve meals to our patrons in June.
- Our emergency men’s shelter will continue to be open 24/7. With that care comes the responsibility to provide 3 daily meals. We are graciously accepting donations of meals, either prepackaged or via local restaurants.
>> At this time, in-person volunteering is still suspended. Should you be so inclined, here are some wonderful ways to safely serve our clients and patrons.
- In-kind donations are being accepted, as long as the items are NEW and in UNOPENED packaging.
- If you order ANYTHING on Amazon, link your account to us on Amazon Smile!
- Search Peter & Paul Community Services to benefit us.
- Donate specifically to Meals/Shelter
Our cost varies depending on details, but here are some estimations…- 1 meal for 1 person (meals/shelter) = $5
- 1 dinner for our entire Shelter, currently = $150
- 1 dinner for our entire Meals program, currently = $500
- Write a thank-you note to one of our many amazing staff members! Download the Word file below, and print on your home printer!
- Mail to:
Peter and Paul Community Services
care of Kati Ballard Hoffman
2612 Wyoming,
St. Louis, MO 63118 - Download Thank You Note
- Mail to:
- Become PPCS Facebook Ambassador: Add our custom frame to your profile picture
- Edit your profile photo
- Click “Add Frame”
- Search “Peter & Paul”
For details or questions on this plan, moving forward, please contact Kati Hoffman: kbhoffman@ppcsinc.org or (417) 693-7304 (text is best)
We’ve been reminded over the past couple of months that an international pandemic tends to put a number of things in perspective: What are our priorities? What are our values? How can we make the best of each day with what we have? COVID19 helped to reinforce what we have always believed: Our clients are our priority. We value the health and safety of our staff and volunteers. We will leverage the experience and expertise of our PPCS staff to light our path.
As we began preparing for COVID19 in February, we put in place several protocols that are still in operation today, including strict sanitation and hand washing procedures for both clients and staff. Since then, as we’ve gotten more guidance from the CDC and Surgeon General, we have updated our COVID19-related policies, and extended the order for clients to shelter in place.
WHAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING:
- All staff are wearing masks during their shifts. PPCS has procured enough masks and face coverings for all clients and staff.
- Our programs have implemented accountability procedures for clients who want to move into our programs during a limited window of time.
- Our Soulard Shelter, which is typically open overnight, is now 24/7.
- Temperatures of all our clients are being checked at least once per day.
- Our staff deep clean all facilities regularly. We are educating our clients on proper hygiene and cleaning protocols.
- Residents at our Soulard Shelter, Labre Center, and Positive Directions programs are sheltering in place.
- At our Garfield Place Apartments, as much as possible, tenants are staying inside their apartments.
- Educational groups led by clinical staff at all programs are socially distancing as much as possible.
- Our Meals Program, which usually serves as many as 200 meals daily from the 2nd through the 21st of each month, has changed from congregate meals in the parish hall to distributing sack lunches by our staff, outside the building. We have also rented an outdoor hand washing station for clients to use.
- With the shelter in place order, all-volunteer opportunities have been temporarily suspended.
- Staff members are covering many extra hours every day, preparing additional meals, and doing all the other tasks usually done by our generous volunteers. In order to compensate the staff for their increased workload and dedication to our clients, we have instituted temporary incentive pay for essential front-line employees.
Thank you for your support of PPCS and our programs and services during this time.
COVID-19 Update from the CEO
Over the past few weeks, we have all experienced some fear and uncertainty. We are asking what the future will bring and how we can handle this current health crisis.
For many of us those questions have risen from the global concerns of COVID-19, but for the homeless neighbors we serve, these were already daily worries.
Amid the concerns of COVID-19, Peter & Paul Community Services is continuing to make the health and safety of our residents, staff, and community our top priority. Thankfully, so far none of our residents are showing symptoms. As we care for men and women that are homeless, we have instituted several proactive measures in adherence with the CDC and Department of Health guidelines.
WHAT WE’RE DOING:
- Our Soulard Shelter, which is typically open overnight, has gone to 24-hours a day, 7 days a week.
- Temperatures of all our clients are being checked daily and often 2-3 times a day.
- We deep clean all of our facilities throughout the day and are educating our clients on proper hygiene and cleaning protocols.
- Residents at our Soulard Shelter, Labre Center, and Positive Directions programs are sheltering in place.
- At our Garfield Place Apartments, as much as possible, tenants are staying inside their apartments.
- In order to achieve social distancing, our Meals Program which usually serves 160 – 200 meals from the 2nd through the 21st of each month, has changed from congregate meals in the parish hall to distributing sack lunches by our staff, outside the building. We have also rented an outdoor hand washing station for clients to use.
- We are working with local commercial kitchens and chefs that are preparing and providing meals for our housing programs and sack lunches for our Meals Program. If your commercial kitchen wants to help, please contact Shane Taylor, our chief development officer, at shane.taylor@ppcsinc.org.
- With the shelter in place order, we have temporarily suspended all volunteer opportunities and gift-in-kind donations.
- Staff members are covering many extra hours every day, preparing additional meals and doing all the other tasks usually done by our generous volunteers. In order to compensate the staff for their increased workload and dedication to our clients, we have instituted temporary incentive pay for essential front-line employees.
- Currently, we are short-staffed and contracting for additional staff through a temp agency. We are hiring part-time, full-time, and PRN Shelter monitors and Behavioral Support Technicians with wages up to $18 per hour. Our job openings are listed here: https://ppcsinc.org/about-us/employment/
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
Since the men and women we serve are some of the most vulnerable to the spread of this potentially deadly virus, we need your help.
Due to the extra safety measures, we are currently facing $10,000 in additional weekly expenses. Now more than ever, we recognize that hope and the support of our community is truly the only way that we can “solve homelessness together.”
Your gift, no matter the amount, will help care for our clients’ needs, supply added meals, provide cleaning supplies, and cover all the extended staff hours.
Please consider giving to our neighbors without homes from the comfort of yours.
Please continue to follow us on social media for future updates.
Thank you!
Steve Campbell,
Chief Executive Officer
