Giving Back!
When the owners of CLASSY Consignment first began work on the store, it took a lot of work and a lot of volunteers to help set things up. Rome wasn't built in a day, but deadlines must be met. Without even asking, the store found volunteers from everywhere willing to help get things going. This overwhelming response solidified the need for the owners to give back to an organization they felt could use help. However, instead of one organization, they found three!
A History of the Pitino Shelter
The vision of the Daniel Pitino Shelter, Inc., (the Shelter) began with the Pastor of Saint Stephen’s Cathedral, Father Bradley, who in his longtime work within the Cathedral’s soup kitchen, saw past the physical hunger of the homeless to the many hungers of the human heart. The Shelter was the natural outgrowth as a result of trying to meet the abundant needs of the body and the spirit among the homeless.
The Shelter was organized in 1993 with the expressed purpose of creating emergency and transitional housing for the growing number of homeless persons in Owensboro-Daviess County region. The three-story Daniel Pitino Shelter located at 501 Walnut Street, near the heart of downtown Owensboro, consists of 22,000 square feet of space. Built in 1959, the building originally served as the Walnut Street Baptist Church’s educational building until the Sanctuary burned in 1992. The Shelter Board of Directors entered into negotiations for the building in the fall of 1993 and took possession of the property in April, 1994. Upon receipt of a HUD Supportive Housing Program grant November 1, 1995, the transitional housing component made the dream a reality.
The Shelter is a non-profit, non-denominational, privately-supported organization which offers both emergency and transitional housing, provides nutritional food, primary physical and mental health care, essential services, and educational enhancement including life skills, legal aid sources, and computer training within the same building. The Supportive Housing Program (SHP) serves as a safe and secure place, a “sanctuary” for homeless families, where the healing process can begin, rehabilitation directed, and independent living guided. Through the SHP, the Shelter has successfully moved homeless persons from emergency shelter through transitional housing and into permanent residency, all the while supporting their needs and providing essential services and resources. The Shelter has the capacity to serve 65 individuals, 50 transitional and 15 emergency. During fiscal year 11/01/2006 to 10/31/2007 the Shelter served 352 unduplicated individuals.
The Meals On Wheels Association of America is the oldest and largest national organization composed of and representing local, community-based Senior Nutrition Programs in all 50 U.S. states, as well as the U.S. Territories. These local programs are our MOWAA Members.
All told, there are some 5,000 local Senior Nutrition Programs in the United States. These programs provide well over one million meals to seniors who need them each day. Some programs serve meals at congregate locations like senior centers, some programs deliver meals directly to the homes of seniors whose mobility is limited, and many programs provide both services.
While remarkable, the one million meals per day figure underestimates the size and shape of our network and its reach and influence in communities across America. In addition to the hundreds of thousands of seniors who receive meals, there are many thousands of professionals employed at the various local Senior Nutrition Programs across the U.S. More notable than that is the virtual army of volunteers who also "work" for these programs. It is said that this group, numbering between 800,000 and 1.7 million individuals, is the largest volunteer army in the nation.
For more information on how you can help, please visit our Meals On Wheels page for contact details.
Wounded Warrior Project™ (WWP) serves military service members who incurred service-connected wounds, injuries, or illnesses on or after September 11, 2001 and their families. On that date, America watched in horror as approximately 3,000 people died including hundreds of firefighters and rescue workers. Many warriors note a sense of duty to volunteer for the military following these tragic events.
Sept. 11 also served as a stimulus for Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom, and New Dawn. Operation Iraqi Freedom refers to military operations in Iraq that began March 19, 2003 and officially ended August 31, 2010. Operation Enduring Freedom refers to combat operations in Afghanistan and other regions in support of the Global War on Terror. Operation New Dawn refers to the conclusion of operations in Iraq beginning September 1, 2010 and ending December 15, 2011.
For WWP, there is a distinct difference between members and alumni; the term alumni indicates a mutual shared experience and denotes your place in an organization was earned. There are no dues here - those were paid by wearing the uniform and on the battlefield.
For more information on how you can help, please visit our Wounded Warriors page for contact details.