The highest level of the ladder of charity is to provide an individual with the means to support himself, to become self-sufficient, so that never again will he or she need to rely on the generosity of others to maintain his independence.
Meet three single mothers who have been living in a homeless shelter, the Shared Housing Center, which houses just 23 families at a time. SHC has a highly dedicated staff that only accepts clients who are motivated to work and obtain financial self-sufficiency, matching our Ladder Project criteria. These three mothers and their sweet, upbeat children, are highly focused on turning their lives around.
Now we need you — whether you buy a laundry basket online at Amazon, donate an old coffee table, or volunteer an hour a week to help one of our moms get her GED, every congregant can do something to make a huge, meaningful difference in these families’ lives.
Now we need you — whether you buy a laundry basket online at Amazon, donate an old coffee table, or volunteer an hour a week to help one of our moms get her GED, every congregant can do something to make a huge, meaningful difference in these families’ lives.
Meet Patrice Mackey, 38, her daughter Keyshia, age 10, and son Malik, age 9.
We will help Patrice earn her GED, get a job, and get an apartment. Currently Patrice and her kids live in the homeless shelter. We will be getting Patrice a job and finding and furnishing an apartment, which we will subsidize until she can pay her own bills. Patrice's story: Patrice dropped out of Pinkston High School in West Dallas during her senior year when she got pregnant at age 17 and her mom was jailed for drug use. That first child is now 19 and lives with Patrice's mother in Oak Cliff. While Patrice readily admits that she has made many poor choices in her life, she is driven to find a way to take care of her two younger children, who have been living with her in and out of homeless shelters for two years. She says she is “inspired" by her son Malik, who often assures her that the three of them will be all right. “He’s my light,” she says of the 9-year-old. “He says, ‘Mom, we can do this. We got this.’ He’s really special.” What we find inspiring about Patrice is her energy and dogged determination to do whatever it takes to secure a better future — since we met her three weeks ago, she has quickly performed every task we asked her to do: she obtained her old high school transcript; she enrolled in two different GED classes, four days a week, and found after-school care for her kids (that we are paying for) so she doesn't miss any classes. She does it all by bus — she's never had a driver's license — getting up at 6 am to take her kids from the East Dallas shelter to their South Dallas school; going to her GED classes at two different locations; getting back on the bus to pick up her children from school or after care at the South Dallas YMCA. Rain or shine, hot or cold, she and her children criss-cross the city uncomplainingly on DART. We are looking for volunteers — as a bat/bar mitzvah or confirmation class community service project, or a volunteer project for an adult willing to give an hour or two on weekends — to help Patrice with her math, science, social studies, and English GED classes. We will provide GED workbooks. The faster Patrice can get her high school diploma certification, the faster she can get a full-time job. The Ladder Project’s Executive Committee is currently formulating an apartment move-in plan for Patrice. We will get back to the congregation with those details. |
Meet Patrice Bryson, 41, and her two third grade boys, Chase, 8, and Caeden, 9.
Patrice has a job and an apartment, we will help her furnish the apartment. Patrice grew up in Detroit in the foster care system. Last year, when life with her boys’ father became unbearable, she posted a call of distress on Facebook and a friend offered Patrice and her boys a couch in Houston. She was soon on a Greyhound bus. A room opened at a domestic violence shelter in Dallas; the Shared Housing Center was her third shelter. When we met Patrice two weeks ago, she was working as a $17/hour clerk at a local courthouse and had just leased an apartment, which she moved into last week. She owns no furniture, the apartment was empty, and she and the boys were sleeping on the floor. Here is a LINK to Patrice’s Bed, Bath and Beyond online registry. Patrice also needs the following donated:
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Meet Petrina Johnson,41, and her daughter Jacelyn, 13.
Petrina has a job and an apartment, we will help her furnish the apartment and help defray a few extraneous monthly bills. Petrina moved here recently from Houston and after a short motel stay in Mesquite wound up in the shelter. Although Petrina earned a BA from Georgia State University and an MBA from the University of Phoenix, she has struggled financially as a single mom. Her most stable period was working as a newspaper reporter in a Houston suburb, but when the paper was sold three years ago, she was laid off. She and her daughter wound up living with a friend. She moved to Dallas hoping for a new start. Petrina starts a new, $15/hour job at a telephone call center next week, and she and her daughter moved into an apartment last week near where her daughter has been going to school. The Johnsons had no furniture and were sleeping on the floor. Here is a LINK to Petrina Johnson’s Amazon online registry . Petrina also needs the following donated:
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David Corn, 60
On September 18, 2018 during Kol Nidre services, Shearith launched The Ladder Project, a pilot program that approaches the problem of chronic homelessness in a unique and holistic way. The Ladder Project empowers our 1,000 congregant families to lift one person at a time out of homelessness. As a congregation, we will take responsibility for this person financially and socially until he or she can accomplish self-sufficiency, however long that may take, so long as that person is making progress. During this time The Bridge will continue to provide caseworker services.
David was a resident of The Bridge, Dallas’ 24-hour, downtown homeless facility for 17 months, until he moved into his own studio apartment. Thanks to you – the members of Congregation Shearith Israel.
David was a resident of The Bridge, Dallas’ 24-hour, downtown homeless facility for 17 months, until he moved into his own studio apartment. Thanks to you – the members of Congregation Shearith Israel.
The complete Ladder Project Blog HERE
You Can Help
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$36 from every Shearith Family
Our goal is to have 100% of all Shearith Israel families make a donation of $36 or more to a Housing/Transportation Fund that will help David and other homeless people we work with in the future. All donations are charitable and tax-exempt. Donate HERE Or mail a personal check to the synagogue, 9401 Douglas Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75225 and write The Ladder Project on the memo line. Thank you to everyone who has already donated. See donors HERE Offer a living wage job. The key to David's transition to self-sufficiency is a higher paying job at a Living Wage of $12 to $15/hour. If you can help, email Laura Miller at laura.miller1@sbcglobal.net |
Donate your time
Another crucial opportunity is to give David and our three new families a sense that people care that they succeed. If you can volunteer, email Laura Miller at laura.miller1@sbcglobal.net Opportunities:
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