| about us From Homelessness to Sustainable Living |
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"In the middle of
difficulty lies
opportunity"
Albert Einstein
difficulty lies
opportunity"
Albert Einstein
| Our History |
New Beginnings was created in 1986 by a group of concerned community members who called
themselves Housing for the Homeless. They built upon a long tradition of helping displaced
people in the community.
"In 1933 the City (Hutchinson, Kansas) was in line for one of three camps (for homeless men looking for
work) to be established in the state, if the City would provide a building large enough to house between
400 to 500 men. In December 1933, the doors opened at the city's Transient Home, 705 S. Main. With the
introduction of the W.P.A. Programs, the home was closed and Hutchinson put the men to work instead of
just supporting them. The men's talents provided a lot of infrastructure in the community; buildings and
landscaping work done in Carey Park, work at the municipal airport, bridge work, canals, and
constructing of buildings at the fairgrounds. Hutchinson's present school hot lunch program was begun
by these workers. The dust bowl shelter belts, still used today, were built by these formerly homeless
W.P.A. Workers." Excerpts from History of City of Hutchinson...web site by Linda Laird and Pat Mitchell
Today, New Beginnings provides for men, women, and children who are displaced from their
homes and offers affordable housing so that others will not have to experience homelessness.
And we have moved beyond Hutchinson to other communities. Each person's unique
contribution to community is fostered by design throughout the services and housing we offer.
Transitional housing for those who need time to reach their goals, permanent supportive
housing for those who wish to live independently even with disabilities, affordable housing to
insure people can be the masters of their own lives, and job training and employment for those
who need to redirect their life's work.
New Beginnings is an agent of caring - a place of outreach for the community; a place where
individual needs are met by universal caring; a place where each person is our brother and
our sister; a place where we each benefit from sharing our hearts and our resources; a place
where we are constantly renewed.
themselves Housing for the Homeless. They built upon a long tradition of helping displaced
people in the community.
"In 1933 the City (Hutchinson, Kansas) was in line for one of three camps (for homeless men looking for
work) to be established in the state, if the City would provide a building large enough to house between
400 to 500 men. In December 1933, the doors opened at the city's Transient Home, 705 S. Main. With the
introduction of the W.P.A. Programs, the home was closed and Hutchinson put the men to work instead of
just supporting them. The men's talents provided a lot of infrastructure in the community; buildings and
landscaping work done in Carey Park, work at the municipal airport, bridge work, canals, and
constructing of buildings at the fairgrounds. Hutchinson's present school hot lunch program was begun
by these workers. The dust bowl shelter belts, still used today, were built by these formerly homeless
W.P.A. Workers." Excerpts from History of City of Hutchinson...web site by Linda Laird and Pat Mitchell
Today, New Beginnings provides for men, women, and children who are displaced from their
homes and offers affordable housing so that others will not have to experience homelessness.
And we have moved beyond Hutchinson to other communities. Each person's unique
contribution to community is fostered by design throughout the services and housing we offer.
Transitional housing for those who need time to reach their goals, permanent supportive
housing for those who wish to live independently even with disabilities, affordable housing to
insure people can be the masters of their own lives, and job training and employment for those
who need to redirect their life's work.
New Beginnings is an agent of caring - a place of outreach for the community; a place where
individual needs are met by universal caring; a place where each person is our brother and
our sister; a place where we each benefit from sharing our hearts and our resources; a place
where we are constantly renewed.
Homelessness can be solved. We don't have to
suffer or watch others suffer because they do not
have a home to live in. All we have to do is
remember back to a time when we did in fact look
out for each other. Whether it was to protect each
other on the frontier or build a city up from nothing
or provide sanctuary from persecution. We have,
in collective memory, times when we have rebuilt
each others homes and barns after storm or fire, or
harvested each others crops because our
neighbors were sick or took in our relatives children
because they were left alone. In my eyes the
primary cause for continued homelessness is the
break down of relationships. Our relationships to
family, to community, and from one generation to
another. This lack of connection to each other has
allowed us to walk by or ignore horrific human
situations. The same situations that in days gone
by, would have caused us to arrive on the doorstep
of catastrophe ready to do whatever was needed.
Today those catastrophes are both extremely
evident or overlooked and invisible. They are
personal tragedies of abuse hidden in the home, or
physical disability, or mental illness or in many
cases just not enough money to make ends meet.
To be homeless means that you are without a
home and without a home you cannot participate
in a neighborhood, the growth and development of
your city, the business of a nation, or have a
connection to the global community now emerging.
You cannot participate because you have no place.
People without a place in our communities/Cities
are displaced.
To end homelessness we must find a place for
all the people within our communities and city
neighborhoods. We must re-connect with
compassion and with care for all the trials and
tribulations in life that befall ourselves and our
fellow human beings.
| Notes..... Shara Gonzales President & Chief Executive Officer gonzalesshara@sbcglobal.net |
| On The Road to Where You Want to Be..... Programs |
New Beginnings programs are based
on these three principles:
1. Everyone encounters
difficult times in their life
2. Everyone has a natural helping
response to people experiencing
difficult times
3. Community is the natural
mechanism of providing
the help needed in difficult
times
For more on our programs....
on these three principles:
1. Everyone encounters
difficult times in their life
2. Everyone has a natural helping
response to people experiencing
difficult times
3. Community is the natural
mechanism of providing
the help needed in difficult
times
For more on our programs....
| Noteworthy Events |
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