I hope we’ve already made ir half way through the struggle of getting our life back and we’re felling much more confident and ready for reaching the goals. Of course after a financial collapse you need to start earning money again and that’s actually our primary task to be accomplished. BUT! In most of the cases the companies hiring want to know your postal address so first and the foremost you need to think about a place of your more or less permanent residence. Of course you should start looking for the job while still in shelter, they allow using their address as your temporary one and their phone to get your messages about scheduled interviews or from a potential employer, but nonetheless it looks much better and increases your chances to find a better position if you’ve got at least a permanent residence for getting your physical mail.

Here again we have plenty of charity organizations ready to help us find housing for a longer time, it’s affordable and still independent even though of course there are some rules and conditions to qualify. Needless to say that employment (or being involved into studying or an active searching for a job) or other types of income (might be alimony, disability or Social Security, etc.) are required, sobriety and common courtesy residential behavior are a must and some restrictions apply (say it may be a no-smoke or no-pets housing). But those little do-s and don’t-s are dust in the wind comparing to the main privilege: YOU WILL HAVE AN AFFORDABLE HOME!!! 🙂 Yeeei! 🙂

I’ve put together some more information about the next level housing solutions here, of course there are much more options I guess outside the charity organisations as well. In case you don’t qualify or simply prefer getting your housing problems solved all by yourself, you can try different options like, say,

• renting a room (search for a roommate)
• getting a live-in job (nursing home or private caregiver)
• trying low-cost hostels
• opting for a job with housing provided (some big plants, building companies and hospitals offer that)
• moving in with your friends or relatives to share rent, food and bills, etc.

Let’s now take a closer look to the charity or social housing organizations and programs here in the Twin Ports area, as well as some governmental and private housing options.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

1) Saint Louis County
Public Health&Human Services
Government Services Center
320 West 2nd Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 733-2717

This place is the FIRST AND THE FOREMOST that you wanna contact and go to!!! Guys, look, we all know that no government in the whole wide World is perfect, otherwise it would have been called Heaven, not the Earth. 🙂 I know that sooner or later in life we’ve all felt disappointed in governmental structures, help, representatives our own votes and were questioning the point of existence of our dear government at all… LOL Many times we’ve exclaimed “what the heck?” wondering where our taxes go and what are those people thinking… 🙂 Well that’s exactly the case to take a little bit of use of our paid taxes as an investment into our safety and secure future — when in need, make your invested dollars finally work for you!!! It hurts me to realize that people are taught to treat government with caution and mistrust when actually those folks are employed exactly for helping and protecting their people from all kinds of hardships. Please, give them a chance — you can’t imagine how many useful assistance programs our government provides, it’s just we are all used to the the thought that nobody can rely on their help. It’s not true, well, at least not every time and not all of it. 🙂 So before you go and contact anyone else, take a trip or at least make a call to your local Governmental Services — in fact, they can and will help, if you ask them in a proper way. NEVER be afraid to talk to your representatives and authorities, they are hired to help you when you need them. I won’t even put all available aids, programs and assistance option they’ve got for you, just visit your local official governmental website. Here’s one for Duluth: www.stlouiscountymn.gov

2) The Salvation Army
215 S 27th Ave W
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 722-7934

The Salvation Army, an international movement, offers a wide range of basic needs services, including housing and food assistance. Help is provided to anyone in need without discrimination. Here are some housing programs available for those who qualify:

Rapid Re-housing Program. Supports low-income families in shelter who need up to one year of rental assistance to obtain stable housing. Participants must complete a coordinated intake and referral. Services provided under this program include:

• Rent subsides
• Utility assistance
• Deposit grants
• Application fees
• Moving assitance
• Advocacy

Family Homelessness Prevention. Provides supportive services and financial assistance to single households and families at risk of becoming homeless. Those server must have already applied for St. Louis County emergency assistance. Participants must have an income and an eviction notice. Program benefits:

• Food, transportation and medical care
• Advocacy and referral to other resources
• Rent and utility assistance (if eligible)

Family Transitional Housing. Provides housing and intensive support services to homeless families with minor children who have maintained at least six month of sobriety. Stays in furnished units are limited to two years. Participants pay monthly rent based on 30 percent of income. Participants will have:

• Safe, affordable housing
• Intensive supportive services
• Education and employment assistance
• Personal budgeting classes
• Advocacy and referral to other resources

Catherine Booth Residence. Is a transitional housing program that focuses on people recovering from chemical dependency.

3) The Housing and Redevelopment Authority
222 East Second Street
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 529-6300
Fax: (218) 529-6344

The HRA of Duluth will strive to ensure that decent, safe, affordable housing conditions are available to all residents of the community. The organization works to achieve excellence in the property they own and manage, and in the programs and services they provide. Through the efforts of its boards, staff and clients, the HRA takes pride in being among the best and the highest performing agencies in the nation. The programs offered are for seniors, individuals with special needs and others, High-Rise  Public Housing provides an affordable alternative to high-prices specialized living facilities while still offering high quality care and assistance. Tenants here have access to three levels of assisted care — and some of the best views in town. For those who qualify, assisted living care includes meal preparation, housekeeping services and medical care, provided by St. Louis County. For more information please visit www.duluthhousing.com

FREE FOOD SHELVES

You know it’s so funny — we hardly ever notice extra $5 spent on groceries when we are well-off and those same $5 become a heavy burden when we can hardly afford buying groceries… 🙁 Sometimes your income is so little that you literally have to choose in between buying food for yourself or buying some substantial need for your baby and of course you lean staying hungry yourself… For this case or any other reason why you can’t afford buying your groceries there are, like magic self-filling tablecloth, the Food Shelves! 🙂 Those are a real blessing when your budget is extremely tight and you can hardly make both ends meet, the Food Shelves will keep you always from starvation or missing your obligatory payments. There’s nothing wrong in getting help, so visiting a Food Shelve shouldn’t make you feel miserable. And if it still does, well, remember what I’ve said about getting rid of excessive pride and have some hope that it’s just temporary hardships and you will most certainly make it better really soon! Here are some local Food Shelves locations, they usually need to see some ID and a proof of residence at each visit.

Union Gospel Mission
219 E 1st St
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 722-1196
Mon-Thurs 1:30-3:00 pm

The VineYard Church
1533 Arrowhead Road
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 525-3462
Tuesday 8:00 pm
Saturday 9:30-11:30 pm

CHUM East
120 N 1st Ave W
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 727-2391
(Serves 10th Ave W to Eastern City Limits&Duluth Heights)
Wed&Fri 10:00-1:45 pm
Wed 3:30-6:30 pm

CHUM West
4831 Grand Ave
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 634-0333
(Serves 40th Ave W to Fon du Lac)
Tue&Thurs 11:00-1:45 pm

CHUM Lakeside
Faith Lutheran Church
51st Ave E and Glenwood
Duluth MN
(Serves Lakeside and North Shore)
Mondays 11:00-1:00 pm

The Salvation Army
215 S 27th Ave W
Duluth MN
Phone: (218) 722-7934
(Serves 10th Ave W to 40th Ave W and Piedmont Heights)
Mon&Thurs 1:30-4:00 pm

Hermantown Food Shelf
4503 Airpark Blvd.
Hermantown MN
Phone: (218) 727-5653, ext. 119
(Serve Hermantown, Saginaw, Cotton, Kesley and Meadowlands)
Tuesday 10:00-1:30 pm

Proctor Food Shelf
Bethlehem Lutheran Church
701 3rd Ave
Proctor MN
(Serves Midway Township and Proctor)

Well, we finally have out food and roof over that head, time to start counting even more blessings and save energy for getting our little household, finances and ourselves look and feel better and more secure! 🙂