NORWICH – Although the former fifth ward school on East Main Street currently sits empty and in desperate need of rehabilitation, the vacant property is being seen in a new light by one local woman who hopes to transform the building into a refuge for the county’s homeless.
City resident Sharon Martinez, founder and sole operator of the Norwich-based not-for-profit organization Isaiah 58 Ministries, Inc., has had sights set on the building for more than two years. She’s reaching out to the community through a series of fundraising campaigns in the effort to raise the $299,000 needed for the purchase of the property. The goal, she said, is to provide a safe haven that also teaches self-sufficiency to those who need it most.
The challenge, explained Martinez, is helping those in need while still saving to buy the property. Her organization has brought in only a few thousand dollars since its incorporation in 2010, and “money has been going out as fast as it’s coming in,” she said, noting regular donations given over the years. To keep the good-will agency afloat, Martinez has been forfeiting her own monthly disability support and social security to reach out to others.
Isaiah 58 Ministries is still far from its fundraising goal but hopes are high, said Martinez, and the venture to purchase the school will keep moving forward.
“I know we’re going to get that building. God has put this in my mind and I’m not giving up. I’m just going to keep on ... I’m sacrificing a lot of my own money but it doesn’t matter because we’re here to serve people,” said Martinez. “My ministry is a ministry of transformation for those at risk. Everybody deserves a new beginning and a fresh start.”
According to Catholic Charities Roots and Wings Director Gary Quarella, who also spoke on behalf of the Chenango Housing Council, there is a need for homelessness prevention in Chenango County. Presently, the Chenango Housing Council – which is not affiliated with Martinez or the efforts of her organization – is pursuing a brick and mortar grant from the New York Office of Temporary Disabilities Assistance for a similar local shelter. If the council receives grant funding, the money could be used for the repair of an existing structure or construction of a new one, explained Quarella.
Quarella also cited recent data supporting the concept of a homeless shelter in Chenango County. From October, 2009 to December, 2011, Catholic Charities undertook the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Rehousing Program, which helped stabilize 940 families (which translates to 2,387 individuals) before they became homeless, and extended support to 126 families (256 individuals) that were truely homeless in Chenango County. Now that funding for the program has run dry, Catholic Charities is looking at new opportunities for homelessness prevention.
“The need is still there,” Quarella said. “We’re reeling because there are families out there that still need a lot of help.”
Catholic Charities is not affiliated with Isaiah 58 Ministries, but Quarella said Martinez’s efforts are “a worthy cause.”
Martinez said she has been promised support by teachers, social service workers and contractors who are willing to donate time and skills to her cause if she acquires the empty ward shool building. As a an incorporated non-profit organization, some funding for building renovations might also be made available to Isaiah 58 Ministries through state and federal grants.
Said Martinez, “The ministry to the homeless is something you can’t do by yourself. It takes a community to reach out, and to love, and to encourage everyone else.”
More about Isaiah 58 Ministries can be found the organization’s website, www.isaiah58ministriesinc.org.