A great big Thank You to all who have answered the plea for additional meals for our shelter.  We received numerous inquiries and scheduled volunteers to fill our meal schedule.  We still have several openings available.  Remember, if you want to provide a meal, but don't care to cook, please consider sponsoring a meal such as KFC two piece dinner meals for 20 residents.  Please call Tariya at 610-696-9016 to sign up for a day convenient for you.

The holidays were made extra special by all the special meals, turkeys, hams and treats dropped off for our residents!  Now that the new year has begun, we've recognized a couple of needs for our kitchen operations.

After reading about our need for Bus Tokens in last month's Shelter Snippets, volunteer Nancy Needhammer took it upon herself to announce our need at her Newcomer's Club of West Chester meeting.  The members came through with a combined collection of $400!!  Nancy was able to purchase over 27 baggies of bus tokens that will be distributed by Dr. Cheryl Brown to our residents needing transportation to medical appointments, counseling sessions, and job interviews.

We are incredibly grateful to Nancy for spreading the word!

If you are affiliated with a group and can help us with this important need, please consider collecting monetary donations or bus tokens.  Our residents are grateful for the assistance but only through your generosity are we able to provide this need.

Avante Salon and Spa in West Chester has been a partner of Safe Harbor providing free haircuts to our residents on the third Monday of every month.  This past year, Avante Salon collected funds from their customers for a special need. 

We are so grateful to volunteer Emily Wolski, hairstylist to our residents who answered the plea and purchased a new digital camera and camera case for our development director, Gina Harrison with the funds collected at Avante!  Gina can now capture the special moments and events of Safe Harbor and upload them to our website and Facebook page as soon as they occur. 

We are sincerely grateful for Emily and her colleagues' commitment to our residents by sharing their talent to keep them looking well groomed!

Longtime volunteer, Rosemary Murphy passed away on January 29.  Rosemary volunteered every single week since 2001 in the shelter.  Rosemary was extremely committed to Safe Harbor and the residents we served.  Every year for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day and Easter, Rosemary would come into the shelter and obtain the names of the current residents so she could write out a card for them.  The residents were thrilled to come back to the shelter after a long day to find a handwritten card on their bed wishing them well.

Rosemary was aware of the special needs of our residents.  One of our female residents was moving to permanent housing last year and Rosemary offered several pieces of furniture to set up her apartment.  When the resident and social worker went to Rosemary's home to pick up the donations, they needed a truck to take all the wonderful things being donated!  The quantity and quality of donations were incredible and completed outfitted her apartment!

In addition to her volunteering at Safe Harbor, Rosemary was the liason between Daylesford Abbey in Paoli (a spiritual oasis where all can seek God in their own time and space) and the Single Homeless Women's Task Force. She was a member of the Peace and Social Justice Committee at the Abbey as well.

We will certainly miss Rosemary and her dedication.  We know that Rosemary truly made a difference in the lives of the less fortunate.