"They are middle-aged people who always worked but were let go by their companies. Many were barely hanging on to their homes and were foreclosed," Perrault said.
Emmanuel House opened in 2010 as a cold weather hazard shelter.
"I don't know if I could sustain my sobriety without faith," Perreault said. "All my staffers are in recovery on both sides of the fence. Our clients respect our judgment and advice. We find they discuss their problems with us instead of acting out."
The Diocese of Providence's Catholic Charity Appeal has also provided significant grants to the diocesan heating assistance program that provides immediate relief to those who cannot afford their heating bill and those in danger of utility shut-offs.
Keep the Heat On provides heating assistance to Rhode Islanders who have exhausted all other public and private forms of assistance, and has raised more than $1.5 million to help more than 5,400 Rhode Island families and individuals coping with financial struggles with oil, gas or electric bills since 2005.
"What started as a safety net to help those coping with rising energy costs seven years ago has become a critical heating assistance program for those Rhode Islanders with no place left to turn for help," said Bishop Tobin.
Funded by grants from the Catholic Charity Appeal and donations from generous individuals and businesses who believe that no Rhode Island family should be forced to live without heat during the winter months, Keep the Heat On provides heat when all other assistance options are exhausted. Last year, the bishop awarded a total of $50,000 from the Catholic Charity Appeal to provide heat for those otherwise who could not afford this basic human need.
In the 2012-2013 heating season, the diocese assistance program assisted over 1,017 households with heating assistance, according to Jim Jahnz, Emergency Services coordinator of the Diocese of Providence.
"It was an incredibly trying time for Rhode Island families," said Jahnz. "Over the past few years, we have seen a steady climb in the number of households that we have helped. There was a definite spike during the 2008-2009 heating season (coinciding with the height of the recession), but our numbers have steadily increased and are reaching the level of the 2008-2009 season again."
Staff at the diocese's St. Martin de Porres Senior/Multipurpose Center report increasing numbers of individuals seeking their senior services.
Established in 1970, the Center collaborates with more than 40 area agencies to serve the elderly, their families and the disabled.
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"We predominantly serve the low income African-American and Hispanic population," Esther Price, executive director. "Poverty does not come in a vacuum, we serve the children and grandchildren of our population. We advocate for them in every way. They are not going to hang on the phone for Social Security, pushing 1,2,3,4. We cut through the red tape. When we call or when we call and say we are calling for the diocese we get results for them."
Need is deepening judging from the numbers of people coming to the food pantry at the center. Visitors to the pantry have increased in the past month, said Price.
Where the center would see 11 people a week earlier this year seeking food or clothing, the number has climbed to 30 people a week, and when the number children supported by each pantry user is multiplied, "all of a sudden I am saying, 'We are going to need more food," Price said.
Posted with permission from the Rhode Island Catholic, official publication of the Diocese of Providence.