More Families and Children Seek Help
More families are turning to Catholic Charities for help with their most basic needs.
Demand at the Dorothy Day Center has increased 117 percent — from 264 to 574 families — since 2005. Overall, the agency’s emergency shelters saw a 19 percent increase in requests for housing.
Catholic Charities added more beds for families at the Family Service Center, a 30-day emergency shelter that helps families obtain stable housing.
The number of families in need of food has increased. Last year, a 14 percent increase in food shelf usage was recorded at Catholic Charities’ three food shelves. At Branch I Food Shelf, 47 percent of people served were children less than 19 years old.
Families point to the state’s foreclosure epidemic and a possible economic slowdown as reasons why they are experiencing instability.
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