From our media partners at WOOD TV:
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Mel Trotter Ministries sees hundreds of people come to its Heartside Neighborhood shelter every day, but an uptick in single women has forced them to set up mats on a basketball court.
“It’s a gym, but we have about 40 mats and that is to meet the increased need,” said Adrienne Goodstal, vice president of programs at Mel Trotter.
Traditionally, staff at Mel Trotter have allocated space for 25 single women at their building on 225 Commerce Ave. SW. But lately that’s changed.
“Altogether on any given night, we could have over 60 women that are staying here,” Goodstal said.
She says the single women coming to the shelter range from 18 years to older than 70 years old.
“Single women are women who are not with children — not to say that they don’t have children — but they are not accompanied by their children,” Goodstal explained.
“We know a lot of the women that access our shelter are fleeing from domestic violence or have been in a domestic violence situation,” she added.
The increase is not isolated to Mel Trotter.
“We work closely with Degage Ministries and I was just in a conversation with their counterpart of mine, and they also have seen an increase in single ladies,” Goodstal said.
The increase in homelessness among single women doesn’t surprise others who work with the homeless population.
“The typical makeup of families who come through the emergency shelter are single women, typically younger single women population,” said Kate O’Keefe, spokesperson for Family Promise of Grand Rapids. “For us here at Family Promise, the majority, well over 80 percent of the families who enter shelters, are single moms with kids.”
Family Promise works with families of all types to find them a home and keep them in it.
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