A dream to help those in South Jersey who are experiencing poverty is coming to fruition by the efforts – and prayers – of a small-but-mighty nonprofit known as People for the Poor, Inc. Its two local co-founders and longtime friends, Caroline Scherrer and Deacon Mike Scott, insist they must share the credit for its success with a higher power.
“I tell you, it is not us that is doing it, it’s God,” Scherrer said. “He never ceases to amaze me.”
A longtime advocate for the homeless and those with low income, Scherrer collected funds at her yearly presentations at her parish, Our Lady of Hope, Blackwood. She is known locally by the nickname “The Sock Lady” due to her one-woman mission to distribute the clothing item to those in need. “I like to be a do-er,” she said.
Deacon Scott, of Christ the King Parish, Haddonfield, said the Holy Spirit prompted his outreach. His commute for work – which used to be 1,000 miles a week – made daytime volunteerism difficult. But a song he heard during his commute, “Another Day in Paradise” by Genesis lead singer Phil Collins, clinched his fate.
“It’s about people who ignore the poor’s cries when they pass them on the street,” he said. “I picked up the phone and called Caroline and said, ‘Let’s start our own nonprofit.’ Three months later, we had a lawyer and an accountant lined up. We got a board together.”
Incorporated in 2004, People for the Poor, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to financially assist the homeless shelters and soup kitchens of Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cumberland and Gloucester counties. Funds are raised via events such as a golf tournament, beef dinners and handbag raffles. Last year, the efforts by the all-volunteer agency – which pays no salaries and has no office overhead – achieved a lifetime total of $1 million in donations to South Jersey shelters and soup kitchens.
The road to its second million in donations begins at its annual benefit dinner to be held March 25 at Christ the King Church, Haddonfield. This year, People for the Poor will present grants of $7,000 to each of 10 homeless shelters or soup kitchens.
Cathedral Kitchen in Camden is one of those recipients. Now celebrating its 50th year, the stated mission of Cathedral Kitchen is “We use food to change lives.”
Noreen Flewelling, vice president of development, explained, “More and more families come for meals and groceries to make ends meet, as well as wrap-around services which connect to other government benefits like Medicare and Medicaid documents.”
The kitchen, which supplies nine shelters and Camden County senior community centers, has a staff of 48 employees and 18 culinary students. It offers a free, 15-week program of job training in the culinary arts which has launched 600 graduates with a 90% job placement. “The grant will help pay for things like utilities, meals and counselling,” Flewelling said.
At Covenant House, “our goal is getting people on their feet,” said James, a case worker at the Atlantic City location. The agency aims to serve 18- to 24-year-olds with a safe place to sleep and a warm meal while assisting them to continue their schooling or apply for jobs in the area.
“We try to fit our game plan to their game plan: get them on their own feet, reunite them with family residents, and focus on [the] person and their needs,” he added.
The grant will enable the agency to supply food, transportation, clothing, toiletries and other necessities to the needy as they plan a stable future.
Another grant recipient, Spirit & Truth Ministries, Inc. “is more than a soup kitchen,” said Chelsea Consalo, chief development officer of the Vineland-based organization. In addition to providing the community with a hot breakfast or lunch, it serves as a hub for people needing assistance applying for SNAP benefits, guest housing, insurance, school enrollment and health department vaccines.
“Meals is at the heart of what we do,” she continued, describing how Spirit & Truth partners with area farmers to provide produce to supplement nutrition for those who need it.
Alana Maldonado, executive director of The Branches Outreach Center in Rio Grande, noted that “we are the only daytime center in Cape May County.”
In addition to offering homeless a place to shower and eat a hot meal (some 11,000 last year), the center donates food, clothing and personal care items as well as helps people to organize their documentation for job placement or access to social services.
“We walk along with them,” Maldonado continued, “aid them in recovery, secure short-term motel placement and work toward a trust-based relationship.”
Other recipients of $7,000 grants from the People for the Poor this year include the Christian Caring Center, Browns Mills; Joseph’s House, Camden; The Eleanor Corbett House, Glassboro; Home for the Brave, Camden; The Aletha Wright “Vision of Hope” Center, Camden, and The Anna Sample Shelter, Camden.
For more information or to donate, visit peopleforthepoor.org or write to P.O. Box 821, Bellmawr, NJ, 08099.
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