LITTLE EGG HARBOR – An ordinance unanimously passed by the local governing body could pave the way for the first dedicated family shelter in Ocean County. The decision allows the township to negotiate the sale of its old town hall to Family Promise of the Jersey Shore, a nonprofit that supports families facing homelessness.
“The next step is signing the contract,” explained Eric P. LeBoeuf, the attorney representing Family Promise. “This ordinance was permission to be able to sell. Now, the township attorney and I must work on the language of the contract.”
The ordinance’s passage was met with applause and aligns with the county’s broader initiative to address homelessness. Rather than operating shelters directly, Ocean County has allocated $7.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to three nonprofits, including Family Promise, to establish and operate facilities under the “Acquisition for Innovations to Address Homelessness” program.
Other organizations benefiting from the funding include HABcore, Inc. and Bright Harbor Healthcare.
The property at 7 Gifford Road once housed the town’s administrative offices and police department. In December 2004, the municipal complex relocated to the current Administrative Justice Complex at 665 Radio Road. The ordinance specifies a sale price of $650,000 for the 7 Gifford Road property.
“We have been the only family shelter operating since 2009 and are an affiliate of the National Family Promise program that is the leading organization addressing the crisis of family homelessness,” shared Elizabeth Golla, the Executive Director of Family Promise. “We have had one of the highest success rates in keeping families housed and families obtaining permanent housing.”
“This building we will be purchasing will help us continue our program providing the same quality care since we started, but now closing the gaps that we have been seeing for so long,” Golla continued. “It will be a light in the community that will be able to truly help so many people.”
Family Promise currently operates its family shelter through a rotation model. Families stay in various local churches for a week at a time, sleeping in rooms with cots or mattresses while volunteers from the congregation provide meals and support. The new shelter would alleviate some of the logistical challenges of the rotating model, providing stability for both families and the program.
Golla provided the committee and members of the community with information regarding the non-profit at the governing body’s September meeting and a separate special meeting.
Family Promise intends to use the shelter to help Ocean County families get back on their feet, with a preference given to those whose last known address was in Little Egg Harbor.
The proposed 90-day program rules would mirror the guidelines currently in effect for families rotating in churches. All prospective participants would undergo strict drug and alcohol screening before admission to the shelter. Anyone who fails to adhere to those standards would not be allowed to stay.
Golla noted that families follow strict curfews, and children are enrolled in daycare or after-school care if their parents work late. Pets are not allowed in the program, and Family Promise suggests that participants utilize foster care for them until they are ready to be reunited. The goal is to provide temporary shelter while helping families get back out on their own.
“Every family who’s graduated from our shelter program graduated our program has moved into permanent housing,” said Krista Raj, who works for Family Promise. “We have a program, and if they don’t abide by the program, there are rules and there are consequences, and they’re all aware of it. “
Preliminary plans for the Gifford Road building include accommodation for six families on one floor, with smaller families placed on the lower level. Rooms would be set up in dormitory style, with each family having their own bedroom and bathroom. These plans are subject to appropriate municipal board approval.
Although a couple of residents voiced opposition to the shelter at a previous meeting, no one spoke out against the concept when the ordinance passed on its second reading. Instead, several voiced their support for Family Promise and its proposed use of the old town hall building.
Pastor Steve Hartman of Lighthouse Alliance Church shared a story about a local family who is on the path to overcoming homelessness with the help of Family Promise.
Hartman said he made the referral to Family Promise who turned the situation from hopeless to one that stopped a family from being on the street. He remembered a woman who was crying because she and her two children, ages 13 and 15, were living in their car. The children were students at Pinelands Regional School District. The woman had lost her job and home.
“Family Promise is an asset, and to do what they do and the expertise that they provide is I think it’s unimaginable.” Hartman said. “They aligned other things for this woman and their future. She had been spending over a week in her car in different places in our community, feeling very unsafe.”
“When she left our building after talking to them, she was smiling and had hope,” continued Hartman.
A junior high school student whose name was inaudible also advocated for the shelter. He prefaced his remarks by saying that his school does it best to help the less fortunate by collecting essential non-perishable food and hygiene products.
“These are people with jobs and children who they are trying to feed and can’t,” the young man said. “Maybe it’s just a bad month for them, or they can’t afford to pay rent and feed their children and themselves at the same time.”
Family Promise’s mission goes beyond providing shelter. The non-profit helps people catch up on rent or mortgage payments and prevent utility shutoffs by paying outstanding bills. However, their financial assistance isn’t meant to be a temporary fix. Participants are counseled on fiscal responsibility and guided through difficult times.
Golla said that of the approximately 800 families who received help from Family Promise in 2023, forty percent were Little Egg Harbor residents.
