Poverty and homelessness are some of the major issues in the 21st century and there is still a lot to be done to reduce the percentage of people who live on the streets and are poor.
And, in order to change something, we do not need to start big. Sometimes, small, but valuable steps can do wonders. One such step is being made by a church in San Francisco called St. Boniface.
Thanks to the Gubbio Project, which began 15 years ago, a large amount of people have been given shelter in the church on a daily basis. And, there are no formalities. The only thing the homeless and poor need to do is to show up.
Continue reading the article to learn more about this amazing project and why we need more such endeavors throughout the world.
The Gubbio Project: A Sparkle of Hope in the Lives of the Poor & Homeless
From the beginning of the project, homeless and poor people came seeking shelter in the church without any formalities. The church provides bedding and no one is ever asked to go and whoever comes will find a place for them.
Around 70 percent of the church’s area is reserved for the project and the rest is available for visitors who are not necessarily homeless or poor. This project’s aim is to show that in God’s home, everyone is welcome and that kindness is one of the ways to put an end to homelessness.
What about the Safety?
A lot of homeless people in homeless shelter feel as if they are in prison and often encounter a lot of violence. But, this is not the case with this project and participants have dedicated a lot of attention on the security and safety so that everyone who visits the church can feel safe and taken care of.
Treating the “Symptoms” rather than the “Disease”?
Homelessness in our society remains a big problem and authorities have spent more time on eliminating the homeless rather than the homelessness. Unfortunately, a lot of US states still practice violent methods to achieve this. For example, Seattle invested in razor wire fences to ensure the homeless cannot set up camp on the roads.
However, they did no efforts whatsoever to find them a home. Moreover, in San Francisco, there were robots introduced who went along the streets and removed homeless people and reported them to the law. The issue does not stop here- there have been cases of people being imprisoned due to feeding homeless people!
Do not forget to check out the video shown below to learn more about this kind and unique project:
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