By Eliza Ridgeway
 JOE HU/TOWN CRIER Kathy Imwalle of Los Altos is president of the board of directors of the San Jose Family Shelter, housed in a converted warehouse. |
The San Jose Family Shelter houses parents and children in transition and surrounds them with support. Occupying a converted warehouse in industrial East San Jose, hotel-like rooms line two high-roofed, sunny galleries that are fronted by a big communal dining hall and kitchen.
Many factors bring families to the shelter, including failed relationships, unemployment, abuse and sky-high housing costs. Clients are drug-tested when they come to the shelter - using illegal substances precludes entry. When new residents arrive, they are greeted with a fully furnished private family bedroom stocked with toiletries, books, stuffed animals and bedding to use at the shelter, which they are then able to take when they establish a permanent home. Pillows are always on the shelter’s donation wish list.
Residents care for their own rooms and do regular chores. Local churches and service groups prepare meals, collect donations and keep the shelter ship-shape. Last month, members of the Foothills Congregational Church renovated the down-at-the-heels food storage shed. Los Altos United Methodist Church also assists the shelter.
When a family comes to the shelter, it is assigned a case manager with whom to identify needs and set goals. Residents are required to find a source of income and enroll their children in school. Evening classes for adults on budgeting, nutrition, health, parenting and employment training occur at the same time the children attend mandatory study time, which mixes homework with educational games and individual tutoring by volunteers from local businesses and schools.
“There’s no point in having just a shelter,” said executive director Patricia Crowder. “It’s all about the services.”
During the summer, occupational therapists in training work with adults and children. With funding from churches and the American Association of University Women, and a 50 percent discount, children can attend Mount Cross Lutheran Camp each year, outfitted by the shelter with a new set of camp clothes and gear. “It expands their horizons - they get experiences outside the norm,” said Kathy Imwalle, president of the board of directors and a Los Altos resident. Two other Los Altans, Bud Oliver and Clare McDermott, join her on the board.
When families leave the shelter, after-care is critical to their success. “You’re asking people to make changes in their lives and their decision-making processes,” Imwalle said.
Case managers check in with the families every week for the first few months after they move out of the shelter, and they often refer children to tutoring, monitor budgeting and help manage health issues.
“When (the visits) taper off, clients have a much better knowledge of where services are and how to manage their lives and stability,” Imwalle said.
The non-profit Family Supportive Housing maintains the family shelter. Its Bridges Aftercare program provides continuing services to families who have secured housing, smoothing the transition. GlennArt Arms provides further transitional housing for some families for up to two years.
With the exception of the GlennArt Arms program, in which residents pay about 30 percent of the housing costs, Family Supportive Housing provides all services at no charge. Its annual budget is about $1.8 million.
Local groups can volunteer to throw holiday parties for shelter residents, tutor and prepare weekend meals.
For more information, visit www.sjfamilyshelter.org or call (408) 926-8885.
