Local shelter warns federal grant freezes threaten transitional housing; seeks community support ahead of "Jail and Bail" fundraiser

Jennifer Lanehart, executive director of Hope's Wings, told the Madison County Fiscal Court on April 8 that the shelter’s third-phase transitional housing program faces possible collapse because of recent federal grant freezes.

Lanehart said a transitional housing grant that normally provides support for placing survivors into permanent housing — described in the meeting as a $400,000 award spread over three years — was shown on the Office for Victims of Crime/Office on Violence Against Women website as pulled and that Section 8 funding has been frozen, which jeopardizes a second funding stream the program relies on. She said one previously awarded grant is already frozen and that continued federal freezes could eliminate the program’s Phase 3 supports.

To bolster local support, Lanehart asked the court and community to participate in Hope’s Wings’ annual Jail and Bail fundraiser next Friday at Central Bank in Richmond. She challenged the fiscal court to help raise $1,500 for the shelter and estimated that it costs the program “well over $2,000, almost $3,000” to place a client into an apartment in the local market. Lanehart said Hope’s Wings runs an active, county-based program and that fundraising this year is “super, super important.”

Lanehart said Hope’s Wings serves clients who become homeless when they leave unsafe homes; the shelter currently supports nearly 20 people in community housing. She urged local residents to donate or participate in other local charities if they prefer.

The court did not take formal action or pledge county funding during the meeting. No county commitment or staff assignment to pursue alternate funding sources was recorded in the transcript.