An innovative approach to the problem of homelessness on Martha’s Vineyard moved a step closer to reality Wednesday with the purchase of a six-bedroom home.
With a rare budget surplus, the state has secured $200,000 for the Martha’s Vineyard Commission to conduct a comprehensive housing and homeless prevention plan, Sen. Julian Cyr announced on a trip to the Vineyard Saturday.
The volunteer-powered Houses of Grace winter shelter system has opened for its third season. “If I didn’t have this, I’d be sleeping around a fire, bundled up,” said Derek MacLeod.
Hospitality Homes, a system of homeless shelters hosted and organized by Island churches, is nearing the end of its first year, with administrators, coordinators and volunteers declaring success.
Beginning in January, seven nights a week, three churches will provide shelter and meals to men, women and families who need a place to get in out of the cold.
Once again, the rural scholars program visited the Vineyard to study a pressing Island issue. This year's topic was homelessness and the housing shortage.
A conversation Thursday about homelessness on Martha’s Vineyard shed light on the gravity of the Island’s housing shortage, and introduced a new initiative by Island churches set to begin next winter to provide emergency housing for those without a home.