Interfaith Hospitality Network
The Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) provides a link between families in need and people who want to help.
In Delaware County there are 13 churches that provide overnight housing and hospitality for up to four homeless families, for one week at a time. Covenant is a partner in this program with Church of the Redeemer. We each provide our facilities twice a year, and both congregations provide the volunteers. We have shared four such weeks each year since 2008.
Volunteers from Covenant provide dinner; spend a few hours in the evening with the families, eating together, talking with the adults, or playing with the children; or they may sleep over. Families are given their own rooms to sleep in, with inflatable mattresses, fresh sheets and blankets. (Volunteers bring their own linens.) About 6 a.m. everyone gets up and dressed. The children eat some cereal while the parents pack lunches. Then a van picks up the guest families. The children go to school or daycare, and the parents go to work or to the IHN day center in Chester to look for work and housing. The overnight volunteers turn off the lights, lock the door, and usually leave by 7:00 a.m., to get their own families ready for school or to go to work. That evening, the guest families return, and a new crew of volunteers is waiting with a warm welcome and a hot meal.
The time needed from each volunteer is small, but 50 volunteers are needed for each week. Help is also needed to set up and break down, when we are hosting at Covenant, and financial donations are always welcome to buy food for breakfasts and lunches. If you would like to join the team or have any questions, contact the church office. Upcoming hospitality weeks are:- March 18-25, 2012 at Church of the Redeemer
- May 20-27, 2012 at Covenant UMC
- September 16-23, 2012 at Church of the Redeemer
- November 4-11, 2012 at Covenant UMC
For more information about Delaware County Interfaith Hospitality Network, visit their website: www.dcihn.org.