David Rout, Executive Director
Fort Collins, Colorado, November 20, 2018
Homeward Alliance is excited to announced that—thanks to new funding from the City of Fort Collins—it plans to expand hours at the Murphy Center for Hope (“Murphy Center”) during cold-weather months. The new hours will begin on December 1, 2018.
The Murphy Center, operated by Homeward Alliance, is the hub of services for people who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness in Larimer County. Some 20 nonprofits collaborate to provide about 40 unique services at a single location. The building is currently open from 8 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Friday. The new funding will extend that closing time to 10 PM from November through April*.
“This is partly about filling a dangerous community gap: the lack of warming centers on weekday evenings during the most-brutal months of the year,” said David Rout, Executive Director of Homeward Alliance. “But it is also about reaching new populations, expanding access to long-term services at the Murphy Center and, ultimately, helping more people escape homelessness.”
During the new hours, Murphy Center guests will have access to core services, such as showers, lockers, laundry, mail, computers and phones. Homeward Alliance’s Hand Up program will
provide employment support to job seekers on some weeknights, and other internal programs are likely to incorporate evening hours. Multiple other agencies have expressed interest in expanding services.
Homeward Alliance submitted the proposal for expansion—at the City’s request—in April 2018. City Council included a slightly-modified version of the proposal in its final budget, which it adopted after a second public reading on November 20, 2018.
The expansion includes on-site security and two new staff members: a Coordinator to oversee night-to-night operations and a Case Manager to provide long-term case management and support to guests. Volunteers are welcome and needed.
* Note: Homeward Alliance could not finalize the expansion until City Council adopted (and funded) the proposal. Hence, the start date is December 2018, but will be November in 2019 and 2020.
ABOUT HOMEWARD ALLIANCE and THE MURPHY CENTER
Homeward Alliance was founded as Homeless Gear in 2008. The organization operates the Murphy Center, Larimer County’s hub of services for people facing homelessness, and nine programs. For more information, visit www.HomewardAlliance.org and/or
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