To Help Shelter, Mayor Stays There

Night Aimed at Showing Nonprofit's Strain

Manassas Mayor Harry J. "Hal" Parrish II spent the night at the SERVE homeless shelter Monday in an effort to raise awareness for an organization that is struggling as donations dwindle and the volatile economy sends more people to its doors.

"SERVE is very much needed now, more than ever," Parrish said. "The whole idea is to focus some attention on the need, and hopefully this will be successful in helping SERVE continue to help people."

SERVE, or Securing Emergency Resources Through Volunteer Efforts, also distributes food and provides financial assistance to Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park residents, and Cheri Villa, its president, said the number of people seeking assistance is up more than 35 percent from this time last year. The food distribution center is feeding about 900 families a month, and the 60-bed shelter is at capacity most nights, forcing SERVE to turn away about 130 people a month.

"We are coming up to our toughest part of the year," SERVE Chairman Rob Sturm said. "The community is very generous during the holidays and when it's cold out, but funding seems to hit a big lull this time of year."

Parrish (R) said his idea to spend the night at the shelter on Dean Drive in Manassas surfaced recently when he realized he would no longer have a roof over his head -- at least temporarily. The mayor sold his house and is waiting for builders to complete his new dwelling.

"Some of my friends said, 'You're going to be homeless,' and it really struck a chord with me," Parrish said. "I have plenty of places to stay, but it made me stop and think of Cheri. I thought staying at the shelter one night was a way to make people aware of the need."

Toting a small suitcase, Parrish arrived and signed into the shelter Monday afternoon. Although he had to leave to attend a City Council meeting, the mayor returned by 9:30 p.m. to visit with people and settle into his bedroom, which resembled a tiny college dorm, equipped with nothing more than two sets of bunk beds. The mayor, who did not displace anyone by spending the night, emerged from his bottom bunk and checked out by 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.

"I think it's great the mayor came because we need a lot of help," said Viliz R. Checo, who has lived at the shelter since March and shared a room with the mayor. "There are a lot of good families without a home."

Villa said the shelter has 10 rooms for families and a handful of men and women's dorms. Shelter residents stay an average of two months and must leave the premises between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily to look for a job.

"We really work to get people to the next level of self-sufficiency," Villa said. "But what is challenging now is that those who are unemployed are not having an easy way of getting back into the workforce."

Villa said the economic downturn and the home foreclosure crisis have changed the face of homelessness as people who had never asked for assistance are forced to seek help. The problem, however, is meeting demand as once-regular donors struggle to keep their businesses and families afloat, she said.

Villa said it costs SERVE $116,000 a month to "keep the lights on." That money is used to support 15 full-time and six part-time employees, the shelter, the food center and the financial assistance program, which processes about 50 people daily.

Villa said Prince William County and Manassas have shown support for SERVE in their new budgets by continuing to fund it.

Prince William Supervisor W.S. Covington III (R-Brentsville) donated $25,000 from his discretionary funds, while the county budgeted about $95,000 for SERVE in fiscal 2010. Manassas pledged $100,000.

"I wanted to reignite interest in this excellent facility," Covington said of his donation. "The outreach SERVE does that the county then doesn't have to do is invaluable."

Villa said SERVE has also launched a Summer Community Challenge to raise $150,000 by July 1. The organization, she said, is almost halfway to meeting its goal.

For information on SERVE, visit http://www.serveinc.org.