On Sunday, Nov. 8, you can enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving feast, music and good company while benefiting two area agencies that provide shelter and services to the homeless in the Kanawha Valley.
The 23rd Annual Thanksgiving Benefit Dinner to Aid the Homeless begins at noon Sunday at Wellington's of Scarlet Oaks Country Club in Poca. All proceeds benefit the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter serving homeless women and families and the Roark-Sullivan Lifeway Center serving homeless men.
According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 3.5 million people will experience homelessness in the United States in a given year. Children under the age of 18 account for 39 percent of the homeless population - 42 percent of whom are under the age of 5.
During the 2008-2009 fiscal year, YWCA Sojourner's and Roark-Sullivan sheltered a combined 1,911 individuals, served 114,404 meals and provided 43,770 shelter nights to homeless men, women and children in the Greater Kanawha Valley.
Each year, area vendors join together to help the homeless in the community by donating items such as hams, green beans and dinner rolls to this event. For the past 23 years, the owners and staff of Wellington's have donated food, serving and cooking services and everything else needed to make this dinner a yearly success.
Tickets are $30 per person and 60 percent tax deductible (children under 10 are admitted free) and can be obtained by calling the YWCA Sojourner's Shelter at 304-340-3553 or the Roark-Sullivan Lifeway Center at 304-414-0109 or online at www.ywcacharleston.org or www.rslwc.org. Checks, made payable to the Thanksgiving Benefit Dinner, may be mailed to Thanksgiving Benefit Dinner,
YWCA of Charleston, 1114 Quarrier St., Charleston, W.Va. 25301.
Tickets also may be purchased at the door on Sunday.
The Roark-Sullivan Lifeway Center is an independent, non-profit agency whose mission is to provide services to those experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness in the Greater Kanawha Valley area of West Virginia. The foundation of all of RSLC programs and services is personal accountability and responsibility. RSLC currently operates four facilities that are open around the clock 365 days a year, providing essential supportive serves to adult men, women and veterans who are experiencing homelessness.
The YWCA Sojourner's Shelter for Homeless Women and Families provides emergency shelter and supportive services 365 days a year for homeless single women, women with children, men with custody of their children and intact families. This 75-bed facility offers a secure, healthy environment with crisis intervention, case management, counseling, and education and job training to help individuals achieve long-term self-sufficiency.