5 churches join forces to help Orlando's homeless

5 churches join forces to help Orlando's homeless
Kate Santich Sentinel Staff Writer
February 19, 2009
For nearly three decades, Orlando has tried to figure out what to do with the homeless in the heart of the city. First, officials opened shelters in Parramore to move them away from downtown businesses. Then they banned panhandling. They shooed them from parks. They even arrested those who fed them.

But now downtown church leaders are taking a different tack: They hope to open a drop-in center near Lake Eola that welcomes the homeless and gives them a place to go during the day.

The first fundraising event for the ambitious project is Friday evening.

"I know I've been overwhelmed by the human need I see out there," said associate pastor Case Thorp of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, one of the leaders of the effort. "Everybody else has just been waiting for the right time, the right facility, the right energy, the right money to come together. And we think the time is now."



The Downtown Orlando Homeless Service Center, the project's working title, would feature a "day lounge" where people can rest, shower, do laundry, and check e-mail and community voice mail. Lay teams would offer Christian fellowship, and case managers would help the homeless find jobs, get mental-health and addiction counseling, and connect to other social services.


Building on Wall Street

The group already has located a 16,000-square-foot building it can use for the center rent-free.

St. George Orthodox Church has agreed to lease the building it owns at 137 Wall St. for the cause. In return, the projects' backers will renovate the interior -- at an estimated $2 million -- and set aside room for a multicultural center that is part of St. George's vision.
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