Social
Concerns
Ministry:Interfaith
Hospitality Network
(IHN Homeless Ministry)
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The Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) is an interfaith group of churches and temples here in Somerset County that houses the homeless. Each week that a church hosts an IHN week it takes about 60 volunteers to make the week a warm and welcoming success for the 14 homeless clients. From setting up beds, making meals, welcoming and overseeing the IHN hours and a number of other jobs, volunteers are needed to make this happen.
Presently
our IHN overnight program is housed down the street in our neighborhood
at the Hillsborough Reformed Church. St. Josephs shares all responsibilities
with the Hillsborough Reformed Church.
Click
HERE to learn more about the Somerset County IHN Program.
IHN basically works like this:
The homeless families are hosted on a rotating schedule on the premises of one of the sponsoring churches. Bringing only some very modest belongings, the family “moves in” on a Sunday, and stays the week until they are moved to the next church location the following Sunday (or until they are successfully moved into their own accommodations). During the week at any of the sponsoring locations, they are bussed each morning at 7 a.m. to various places such as school, preschool, jobs, or training sites at the IHN offices in Somerville. They are fed during the day at their various day sites and upon arrival back at the host church at 6 p.m., are greeted by volunteer hosts and hostesses from the sponsoring church, along with a warm dinner, and usually prepared by other volunteers from the church.
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Volunteer opportunities include:
Adult
Greeters: people to greet the clients and stay with
them from 6-9 pm
Cooks: cook dinner or dessert in your home then delivered by 6 pm to the HR church
Overnight Hosts: people to stay 1 night overnight from 9pm to 6am. You may sleep on the job on a cot!
Miscellaneous Jobs: driver of the truck, pick-up of linens from
Somerset Medical Center, clean up, oversee confirmation students,
purchase food, to name a few.
All volunteer opportunities are for one evening of one week, unless you choose
to sign up for more that one evening’s job.
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IHN
of Somerset County Newsletter: Click HERE
Read about how your volunteer hours and dollars strengthen
the homless and those transitioning iInto lives of strength and
wellness.
You may even read about some of the clients you have helped in
the past!
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Want to help out or observe?
To help out you may contact one of the following St. Jo/HR coordinators:
Adult Greeters
Sandra Malebranche of St Josephs
malebranchs@telcordia.com
(908) 359-9502
Cooks of Dinner or Dessert
Kristin Mazuera of St Josephs
kmaz171@yahoo.com
908-431-4200
Overnight Hosts
Carol Luidens of Hillsborough Reformed Church
cluidens@comcast.net
Miscellaneous Jobs
Carol Luidens of Hillsborough Reformed Church
cluidens@comcast.net
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