For the past year, we’ve been anticipating the opening of The Beacon, the new homeless day resource center operated by Catholic Charities.
The day finally happened, and The Beacon shined as a light of hope in the lives of over 200 men, women, and children experiencing homelessness in Dane County.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness states that there are 564,708 people experiencing homelessness on any given night in the U.S.: 36,907 (6.38 percent) are children, 47,725 (8.33 percent) are veterans, and 269,991 (47.6 percent) are disabled and unable to work.
Many factors can contribute to a person becoming homeless. These factors include (but are not limited to):
• Poverty
• Lack of affordable housing
• Job loss
• Lack of health care
• Mental illness
• Substance abuse
• Domestic violence
 |
||
| Partners in the homeless day resource center project gather to announce its name as “The Beacon” during a press conference on May 2 in Madison. Pictured from left are: Dane County Executive Joe Parisi, Catholic Charities of Madison President and CEO Jackson Fonder, President and CEO of United Way of Dane County Renee Moe, president of J.H. Findorff & Son Inc. Dave Beck-Engel, and Madison Deputy Mayor Katie Crawley. (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash) |
MADISON — “The homeless day resource center will be known as . . . The Beacon.”
The words of Catholic Charities of Madison President and CEO Jackson Fonder marked the next step in the project to open said resource center near downtown Madison.
The name was announced at a May 2 press conference at the United Way of Dane County in Madison.
The announcement came after more than 400 people submitted naming ideas online and more than 400 people voted on the name finalists, which were: The Beacon, The Net, The Opportunity Place, and The Turning Point Center.
At the press conference, Fonder said “The Beacon” was submitted first by former Catholic Charities board member Diane Ballweg. Other people also submitted the name as an idea later in the process.
Joining Fonder at the press conference was Renee Moe, CEO of United Way of Madison.
It is a sad fact that many men, women, and children continue to be homeless in the city of Madison and Dane County.
Here we are in the capital city of Wisconsin, a city known for its progressive character. Yet each year, about 3,500 people experience homelessness, nearly half of them being children.
How can we reduce or even eliminate homelessness in our city? A bold effort is underway to work on this problem. It is a collaboration of the faith, business, nonprofit, government, and neighborhood communities working together.
