Next month is going to be rather extraordinary at Cross Roads House.  We anticipate that between 15 and 20 residents will be moving out of the shelter and into permanent housing.   This is a tremendous level of activity for us.  For comparison, this month about five people will move from the shelter directly to permanent housing.

Among the residents moving out there are both single adults and families with children.  Within the families that are scheduled to leave, there are nine children who will soon be living in their own homes.   

There are multiple factors that are contributing to this high volume of activity.   One is an improved economy.  There are several new businesses, especially restaurants, that have opened recently and many have hired shelter residents.  They have provided many year round, stable jobs.  According to our case manager Jessica Brazeau, "We have a lot of hardworking people living here.  They are willing and able to work and many have done a great job of saving money so they can move out.  It's really great that these new employers have been willing to offer some of our residents employment opportunities."

Another factor is the recent addition of some new, permanent supportive housing units.  We have several residents who are moving into new "Families in Transition" housing located in Dover.   Many other residents have secured private market rental units.  They will be moving to many different communities around the seacoast.  One is even purchasing a mobile home.

According to Jennie Phillips, another Cross Roads House case manager, "It's significant to note that these people are not just moving out of the shelter into some other kind of temporary situation, like living with other family members.  These people are all moving into permanent homes.  It's really rather remarkable.  This is our definition of success!"    She added, "Some of our residents have overcome very significant obstacles and are finally ready to move on.  They are doing so with very comprehensive support plans in place for both themselves and their children.  They have accomplished a lot while they've stayed here."

While some of our residents were with us for months and had many obstacles to overcome, others had relatively short stays.  The latter only needed a temporary place to stay while they worked to save enough money to get back on their feet.  Either way, we are delighted for all these people who will soon have a fresh start in their own homes.  Their success would not be possible without the support of our fabulous case managers, staff and all our donors and volunteers.  Thank you to all for contributing to this success!

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This year a group of volunteers  planted and will be maintaining a vegetable and herb garden at the shelter.  We have six raised beds and multiple containers located behind our building, right outside our dining room.   

If you are interested in helping out, please contact our volunteer Sandy DeSisto, at sandydesisto@gmail.com 

An organizational meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 4th from 7 to 8 pm at Cross Roads House.  Please join us if you'd like to learn more about the project and possibly join the volunteer gardening team!  

Have you ever considered volunteering at  

Cross Roads House?

Seven nights a week, our volunteers prepare and serve dinner to our residents.  

Find out how you too can become a volunteer by attending one of our Volunteer Orientations.  The date of our summer orientation will be announced soon.  If you have any questions about volunteering at Cross Roads House, please contact JoAnn Rohde at j.rohde@crossroadshouse.org.