INCLUDES VIDEO OF RIBBON-CUTTING, TOUR, FAIR | Find out why organizations have created this new location to provide services to the ‘unhoused’ in outer East Portland …
Partners, supporters, and clients gather for the opening ceremony for the PDX Saints Love Day Shelter, in the Montavilla neighborhood.
Story and photos by David F. Ashton
Two organizations – PDX Saints Love, in partnership with Shelter Portland – joined in opening the new PDX Saints Love Day Shelter on March 21 with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
The day shelter is located on the parish property of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church, at 247 SE 82nd Avenue – which, as a church congregation, held their final services on December 3, 2023.
A sizable group gathers to learn more about this outer East Portland day shelter.
“This day, and this ribbon-cutting, are important to me, because outer East Portland needs a Day Shelter; one like we’re providing,” PDX Saints Love Executive Director Kristle Delihanty told East Portland News that day.
“This is a place of ‘social inclusion’, where ability, opportunity, and dignity come together – so individuals feel safe and supported, while being nurtured,” Delihanty continued. “Here, they won’t face barriers towards better outcomes.”
Kristle Delihanty (far right, on steps) introduces “the team” who is involved in the PDX Saints Love Day Shelter.
The day shelter can assess individual needs of those who come, connect them with services, and especially “help our neighbors off the streets,” as Delihanty put it, during her formal remarks.
In this video, see some of what took place that morning, including the Community Services Fair, the ribbon cutting ceremony, and a brief tour of the facility:
They expect to serve 130-150 outer East Portlanders per day with supportive services, including assistance in shelter referrals, detox, and SUD referrals, as well as housing navigation, and connections to health care, according to Delihanty.
In his address to the gathering, the Titan Freight Systems’ President Keith Wilson, also the founder of Shelter Portland, reiterates many of the points made by Delihanty.
At the grand opening, some of the “partner providers” had set up canopies because of the intermittent showers that swept though the area that day.
Those partners included: Cultivate Initiatives Shower Truck, Great Circle Recovery, Care Oregon, Trillium, Portland Rescue Mission, Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon, Central City Concern, and Straightway Services.
Kendra Pennington of Trillium Community Health Plan – she’s Trillium’s Community Outreach and Engagement Manager for the Tri-County region – tells how programs will benefit those who visit the new day shelter.
Once fully operational, the PDX Saints Love Day Shelter will operate on the following weekly schedule:
Monday, 9 am to 3 pm: Workforce Development
Tuesday, 9 am to 3 pm: Wellness Fair
Wednesday, 4 pm 8 pm: Community Activities
Thursday, 9 am to 3 pm: Wellness Fair
Friday, 1 pm to 8 pm: Workforce Development
Kendra Pennington and Keith Wilson hold the ceremonial ribbon for formal cutting by PDX Saints Love Executive Director Kristle Delihanty.
To find out more about the work of PDX Saints Love, and to find out how you can help, see their official website: CLICK HERE.
© 2024 David F. Ashton ~ East Portland News ™
click here to subscribe
