Mad River Valley Rotary (MRV Rotary) recently joined forces with its district to award Good Samaritan Haven (Good Sam), a shelter network in central Vermont, a matched grant of $8,000. The grant funds will be used to support Good Sam’s Street Outreach efforts over the coming year, ensuring unsheltered individuals with essential camping gear and supplies.
The Mad River Valley area does not have a homeless shelter; however, Good Sam does assist persons from the area and the Mad River Valley Rotary membership voted overwhelmingly to support this project, according to spokesperson Linda Levin.
Good Sam, executive director, Julie Bond, praised local Rotary, “We are so grateful for the support from Mad River Valley Rotary and the district as approximately 300 unsheltered individuals over the course of a year will benefit from street survival kits. Indirectly, the entire community benefits from the reduced social and economic costs associated with unaddressed homelessness, as well as from a strengthened collective commitment to caring for our neighbors in need.”
Mad River Valley Rotary representative, Dr. Roger Porter, visited the Good Sam homeless shelters in both Berlin and Barre and worked out the potential grant agreement. “We understand that this is not a sustainable solution to the housing and homelessness crisis but are confident that Good Sam will continue the work necessary for a long-term, adequately funded strategy,” said Dr. Porter.
The Mad River Valley Rotary, a chapter of Rotary International, annually approves approximately $70,000 to community-based projects in the following areas of need: education, housing, health care, recreation and the arts and sciences.
For more information about MRV Rotary or how you can become involved in its charitable giving efforts, please visit www.mrvrotary.org.
