Hearts with a Mission will seek federal Community Development Block Grant money allotted by the city of Medford


May 1, 2008
By Meg Landers
Mail Tribune

A budding organization is seeking $216,000 in federal money disbursed by the city to establish an emergency shelter for homeless teens.

"Youth do not belong in a shelter, youth belong in a family," said Kevin Lamson, president of Hearts with a Mission, a nonprofit organization. "But a lot of times there are families out there that aren't the best place for a youth to be in, for whatever reason. This is a huge need in our area."

A Medford City Council public hearing is scheduled for 7 tonight to consider the allocation of $614,230 in Community Development Block Grants, a portion of which could go to Hearts with a Mission to buy a house on Edwards Street. Every year the council holds a public hearing to review the spending of the CDBG funds.

Lamson said he's served on the board of Helping Hands International, a disaster relief organization, for four years, and the work inspired him to help those in need locally.

The Medford resident said a third party has already purchased the house, and if awarded the grant the organization would buy it for $200,000. The house was once a group home for Living Opportunities.

Many teens have been kicked out of their homes, live in abusive homes or face other dangerous situations, said Lamson. The shelter would provide teens with a safe, secure environment for 72 hours and link them with other services if needed, such as drug treatment programs, he said. The residential care facility would provide temporary emergency shelter to teenagers through a Christian-based approach, though Lamson said there's no church responsible for the organization and clients would not be required to attend church.

Planning is still in the early phases, though Lamson said he's optimistic that things can move fast.

"I would love to have it open before the snow flies," he said, but added, "we haven't even started to raise the funds to renovate it yet."

Medford Police Chief Randy Schoen supports the idea of an emergency teen shelter, though statistics on homeless teens in Medford were not readily available.

"The police department really doesn't know how big a problem it is," he said.

As long as the organization works closely with law enforcement and community services and takes precautions to weed out predatory teens or adults, he said, it can provide a needed service.

Lamson said precautions will be taken to prevent problems like those at the youth shelter in Talent seven years ago.

In 2001, state and county investigators closed the Community Works Youth Diagnostic Shelter in Talent after two workers were charged with sexually abusing eight teenage clients. One was sentenced to six years in prison, the other to four years.

He said motion detectors can alert others if someone enters or leaves a room. He also plans to do extensive background checks and fingerprinting of all staff and volunteers.

"You have to take all the safety precautions you can," he said.

The CDBG funds, from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, total $614,230. That's down 3.5 percent from last year's $636,217, said Louise Dix, neighborhood resource coordinator for Medford.

CDBG funds are based on population and poverty statistics, Dix said. Though Medford's continue to worsen, the federal government is allocating less, she said.

The annual grant goes to urban areas for assistance for affordable housing, public health and safety and other services for low- and moderate-income residents.

The council holds a public hearing every year to receive information on the proposed distribution of the funds, as recommended by the Housing and Community Development Commission.

In addition to the Hearts with a Mission project, proposed allocations include $50,000 to the Salvation Army for city utilities for the Hope House Transitional Shelter, $35,000 to the Housing Authority of Jackson County to rehabilitate a West Main Street apartment complex, $20,000 to the Medford Senior Center and others.

Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail mlanders@mailtribune.com.