Our History
- Started December 2014
- Answered a Facebook posting to gather clothing for the homeless to either be given to shelters or distributed directly to the homeless
- Todd decided to give directly and distribute to the homeless
- On 12/2/14 Todd did a hike into the woods by Crosby Lake area of St. Paul and found his first homeless camp.
- On day two, Todd met two homeless men who said to him, “Sure it’s Christmas time everybody thinks about us now and forgets about us the rest of the year.”
- Todd identified a need to visit camps weekly to bring basic needs to the people living in the homeless camps.
- Walking With A Purpose Minnesota became a 501c June 2015.
- We have grown to a point where we are the “go to” organization for working with the chronic homeless people living around the St. Paul area.
What is Chronic Homelessness
According to Department of Housing and Urban Development, chronically homeless individuals are homeless persons with a disability, such as mental illness, drug dependency, or a physical impairment, who have been living in a place unsuitable for habitation or a homeless shelter for one continuous year or four episodes of homelessness in three years.
“Each year, between 2.3 and 3.5 million individuals experience a period of homelessness. Around 17 percent of these people remain homeless for long periods or experience intermittent episodes of homelessness.”
The Need
- We search out new camps as they have to move often
- We visit our homeless camps 3-4 days a week
- We bring food, clothing, camping supplies, love and compassion
What You Can Do To Help
DONATE
- Food Items Needed: (canned goods like meals in a can, ravioli, spaghetti & meatballs, tuna, etc.. Snack items like peanuts, trail mix, chips, fruit snacks, granola bars, pudding snacks, etc)
- Clothing Items Needed: Socks, Jeans, Hooded Sweatshirts, Shoes, Boots, T-Shirts
- Camping Gear Needed: Tents, Tarps, Sleeping Bags, Cook Stoves, Propane, Hand Warmers, Flashlights, Batteries, Candles
- Financial Contributions: When we don’t have enough donated supplies we need to purchase supplies
VOLUNTEER
- Do you like to hike? Come join us on a distribution day.
- Are you good with computers? We could use help with keeping our website and social media updated
- Help us sort clothing and prepare food packs.
- Are you organizationally inclined? Join our Board of Directors.
