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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend July 19, 2005 Brandon Walston of Medford works on remodeling the upstairs portion of a small house on Fifth Street in Medford that has been temporarily donated by St. Mark�s Episcopal Church for use as a family homeless shelter. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Temporary shelter Local church donates a house for homeless familiesto use while St. Vincent de Paul builds a new shelter By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune Moved by the plight of homelessness, community donors have stepped forward to provide a temporary site for a shelter — and a new home for a family of five. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Medford has donated a small house on Fifth Street for use as homeless quarters while St. Vincent de Paul builds a new shelter across town. "It’s such a godsend," said Kathy Morgan, vice president of community relations for the nonprofit agency. Within days, up to five homeless families — as many as 20 people — will be able to move into the two-story house in west Medford. By next month, construction will begin on a $2.7 million project to expand the shelter and other agency services. Meanwhile, separate donors have offered space to former shelter clients Ray and Charlotte Harbour and their three children — including perhaps a house to buy. Advertisement "We’re so excited," Charlotte Harbour, 31, said Monday, adding that they’ve never owned a home. "We’re just waiting to hear." If arrangements to buy a house in Medford don’t go through, other landlords have offered to rent space to the family. Still other people sent hundreds of dollars to help the Harbours, who moved to Medford from Alaska last month and found themselves unable to find shelter. Their troubles, shared by many families struggling to afford housing, were outlined in a Mail Tribune story last week. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church officials decided to offer the new shelter site for free to St. Vincent de Paul after reading about the agency’s problems securing emergency space. "Our senior warden said it would be a good idea to see if we could help them," said Christian Mathisen, chairman of the church’s outreach committee. The offer is a relief to shelter manager Al Zon, who previously said the service would have to close during construction. "It means we have a temporary shelter and we can relax," Zon said. For the past six years, the building at 404 W. Fifth St. has housed a program for homeless families run by the Interfaith Care Community. That arrangement ended in June by mutual agreement said Mathisen and Sharon Schreiber, director of the agency. "We could not afford to manage the program without some support," Schrieber said. "It’s just a very labor-intensive program to run." St. Vincent de Paul managers will live on site and staff members will visit every day to monitor the shelter, said Morgan. The initial agreement is for three months, but it could extend to the duration of construction — or up to 18 months, Mathison said. A pressing need for affordable housing tops the list of community concerns, several recent regional studies have shown. A recent survey found about 1,200 people were homeless in Jackson County, though advocates say that figure is probably very low. St. Vincent de Paul has raised about $2 million in grants, donations and in-kind contributions since the "Beacon of Hope" project was launched last year. A groundbreaking ceremony for the new shelter building is planned for Aug. 6. The public is invited. Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail Temporary shelter ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers dvd-r helzberg diamonds Distance Education Diamonds Online Poker Auto Insurance Mesothelioma Home Equity Loans Slippers Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Canadian Pharmacy Website Design & Marketing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Mortgage Calculator Free Home-Loan Referrals Payday Loans Air Purifiers Advertisement s