Last summer, H.O.P.E. Outreach experienced an organizational collapse.
The outreach group that for years had been committed to helping out people exploited (H.O.P.E.) in 麻豆精选 and Vernon suddenly faltered. Hamstrung by financial struggles, its board of directors dissolved in June 2024 and the outreach in 麻豆精选 shut down.
The team of volunteers in Vernon, which for seven years had been pounding the pavement helping people on the streets, was blindsided.
"We were really ticked off because we had no idea this was coming, it came out of left field," Mel Francescutti told The Morning Star. A H.O.P.E. volunteer for six years, she said volunteers in Vernon felt if money problems had been made known, they might have been able to do something about it.
With no board and fewer resources, the entire H.O.P.E. network was supposed to dissolve. But the Vernon team decided to soldier on.
Against the odds, the Vernon volunteers have kept the outreach alive. They've dropped the periods between the letters (H.O.P.E.) and now go by HOPE Outreach Vernon, but the commitment to helping Vernon's most vulnerable has stayed the same.
"We have such a great relationship with all the people that need our services here in Vernon, and just to take that away, it just didn't make sense," Francescutti said. "It's needed. It's very much needed here."
She said when news of H.O.P.E's impending demise in 麻豆精选 came down, volunteers took stock of the situation in Vernon. They found they had a locker full of clothing, food and other supplies to give out, enough to keep them going "for a long time."
"So why would we shut down? We were our own entity anyways, we were under the H.O.P.E. umbrella but we ran ourselves here," Francescutti said. "The funding they would get, we would get separate funding here in Vernon and we would keep it here in our community."
Francescutti said some of the funding the 麻豆精选 team received was shared with Vernon. She acknowledged that the collapse of the umbrella organization and the resultant loss of funding will make things more challenging for the Vernon team to keep going.
But they're striving forward on their own as long as they can, even if the future is riddled with uncertainty.
The team has some funds from a recent Cobbs Bread fundraiser to keep them going in the short term.
"We're kind of living on that money right now," she said. "And that's helping us to pay for our storage locker. Otherwise, we don't know yet how we're going to survive. But as long as our locker is paid for, we're good for a while."
The Vernon HOPE team had as many as 30 volunteers before the board in 麻豆精选 was dissolved. Now the team is down to seven members.
But the smaller team is resolute in its goal of helping women on the streets by sourcing warm clothing and supplies, providing support to women in the sex trade after a bad date, and helping men, too, by continuing the Narcan team that H.O.P.E. started up a few years ago.
With the smaller size of the team, HOPE no longer wanders around in search of people to help. Instead, volunteers are stationed at The People Place parking lot every Tuesday from 6-7:30 p.m. They set up a couple tables and have clothing, toiletries and food to distribute, and Narcan for anyone in need of overdose revival.
"All of it's donated," Francescutti said.
The team has an account set up with Chasers Bottle Depot, and companies like Kal Tire have offered their support. On Tuesday nights Ratio Coffee gives the team their day-old pastries. Carousel Consignments provides clothing once a week. And when the 麻豆精选 team dissolved, they gave their remaining supplies to Vernon, which is currently being stretching out.
"We've got little things on the go, but we don't have a steady stream of money coming in," Francescutti said.
The team recently received a $2,000 donation from Interior Health, but because they are no longer a non-profit ("We're just nothing right now, we're just a group of ladies," Francescutti said), they have no way to cash the cheque.
"We're trying to figure that one out," Francescutti said.
She added that while H.O.P.E. 麻豆精选 has dissolved, a couple of the ladies have recently started up their own outreach activities to provide the desperately needed services, albeit on a much smaller scale.
Anyone who would like to donate to HOPE Outreach Vernon can reach out to Francescutti at melscutti@gmail.com, or reach out to the HOPE Outreach Vernon Facebook page. More volunteers are also welcome to help out on Tuesday nights.
