Vol. 17, No. 29	April 30, 1998

Continuing ed. director is honored for public service

I didn't start with a vision of helping the homeless, but a vision grew along with the program," said Matthew Shipp, continuing education, who this evening is receiving the Sojourners' Place Window of Opportunity Award. The presentation will be made at the Light Up the Night benefit for the homeless at the DuPont Country Club in Wilmington. Shipp is being honored for 12 years of service helping the homeless of Delaware.

A retired police officer of 20 years, Shipp began to work with the homeless in 1985, along with other members of St. Matthew's, his intercity Episcopalian church. Shipp, a junior warden of the church at the time, recalled that a meeting was called to look at the increasing problem of the homeless, especially among women and children. Affordable housing was becoming scarce, and more people were becoming homeless, he said.

A converted firehouse at 12th and King Streets in Wilmington was one of the early sites for a shelter for the homeless, which eventually evolved into Sojourners' Place. Shipp recalled, that on the first night in 1987, two people were fed and given shelter. This number grew to 20 on the second night, and, on one of the coldest nights in the bitter winter of 1987-88, 178 people crowded into the small building.

"The physical proximity of the firehouse shelter to downtown Wilmington raised awareness of the homeless issue," Shipp said.

Dubbed Sojourners' Place, it was a place to stay for a time, for new beginnings. By 1991, the facility had grown and a new location was found at 30th and Northeast Blvd., in Wilmington. "Starting with nothing but four walls, the building had to be completely renovated, which cost more than $3 million," Shipp said.

"There is a stereotype that the homeless are lazy and don't want to work," Shipp said. "This is just not the whole picture. There are as many reasons for homelessness as there are types of people who are homeless. Over the years, I've found that all kinds of people are homeless, including a pharmacist and a person with a doctorate.

"The vision for the care of the homeless had changed from the concept of 'three hots and a cot,'" Shipp said, "to an attempt to treat the problem from a holistic perspective."

The name Sojourners' Place was chosen to reflect the new vision, he said. "These are people on a journey. This is a place to seek refuge for a time, and then to be turned loose to lead normal lives."

The program at Sojourners' Place is drastically different from the overnight shelter concept, Shipp said. Now there is an extensive intake interview, a contract to sign and rules to follow. Addictions are treated, residents are provided with counseling, skills are taught by attending various schools, and jobs are found, he explained.

When a job is found for the resident, Shipp said, part of the salary pays for living at Sojourners' Place and part is deposited into a savings account. The staff at Sojourners' Place provides the residents with the life skills necessary to make it on their own.

"We have a more than 87 percent success rate," Shipp said. "I had some rough days, but it has all been worth it-just to help one person."

-Gail E. Walford