Hey, fellow Angry Ohioans.
Cleveland.com reported this week that the Metanoia Project does not have enough money to open its seasonal homeless shelter this winter. After nearly 20 years of operation, the entire organization could disappear by the end of the year.
Metanoia needs approximately $250,000 to operate its shelter for six months, from November through April. Last winter, it sheltered as many as 45 people a night.
This one is personal for me.
I Saw This Work Firsthand
I volunteered at Metanoia for one winter season in 2019. I usually worked around the showers, giving people fresh towels, toiletries, socks, underwear and whatever else they needed. I also collected and donated supplies.
My ex-girlfriend and her father, both physicians, have provided pro bono medical care to people experiencing homelessness in Cleveland. Dr. Sweeney also sits on Metanoia’s board. I have been connected to this organization, directly or indirectly, for nearly seven years.
I have seen the good it does.
Metanoia is not just a room filled with beds. It is a low-barrier shelter for people who cannot or will not use the traditional shelter system. Metanoia says guests do not have to meet programming requirements to receive a bed, and they can stay as long as they need. The organization provides meals, clothing, showers, laundry, resource connections and help finding housing, healthcare, employment and recovery services.
The staff bring people inside before the temperature becomes dangerous. They provide dinner, hot showers and clean bedding. More importantly, they treat people like human beings.
The Story I Still Remember
One man I met had been in jail for a couple of months. While he was incarcerated, he could not pay his rent. He lost his apartment, and his belongings were thrown away.
When he was released, he had nothing.
He went directly to Metanoia, where he received a bed and a hot shower. That stability gave him time to look for work. Within a couple of weeks, he found a job on a construction crew. A few weeks later, he was promoted to a supervisory position managing several workers.
His boss respected his work ethic and eventually offered him a place to live in one of his properties. The man saved money, moved out of Metanoia and started rebuilding his life.
Metanoia did not solve every problem for him. It gave him the flexibility, time and safety he needed to solve those problems himself.
I met another man who was working and saving money for an apartment deposit. He needed enough savings and sufficient employment history before a landlord would approve him. Metanoia gave him somewhere safe to sleep while he put those pieces together.
These are failures in the larger system, but Metanoia gave these men an option that worked for them.
Guests repeatedly talked about the shelter’s flexibility. They could keep their belongings with them. They felt safe. They respected the staff, and they believed the staff cared about them.
That is not something you can measure by simply counting how many beds exist somewhere else.
“Other Beds Are Available” Misses the Point
County officials say the traditional shelter system has available beds and that nobody seeking shelter will be turned away.
That does not answer the actual problem.
Some people have been removed from traditional shelters. Others do not feel safe or comfortable in them. Some have partners or pets they will not abandon. Some have possessions they need to keep with them.
Metanoia exists specifically for people who fall through those cracks.
According to the Cleveland.com report, approximately 170 people were counted living outside in August. Cuyahoga County’s only other seasonal shelter can accommodate fewer than 50 people and requires a referral.
The county can say beds exist somewhere else, but that does not mean the people Metanoia serves will use them. Metanoia’s own description of its mission is blunt: its shelter exists primarily to keep people alive when they cannot or will not enter traditional shelters.
In a Cleveland winter, this is potentially a life-or-death distinction.
We Are Talking About $250,000
Metanoia needs approximately $250,000 to operate for the entire six-month winter season.
Its funding has been drying up. According to the reporting, a funding reduction involving the ADAMHS Board cost Metanoia approximately $90,000 annually. The county temporarily provided a $75,000 grant, but that money was not guaranteed for another season.
Metanoia reportedly applied for more than 60 grants this year and was rejected by most of them. The organization is now so financially strained that it cannot afford to pay its executive director beyond this month.
For comparison, Cuyahoga County, Cleveland, EDEN and other partners recently celebrated the $31 million redevelopment of the Norma Herr Center. That project added 26,600 square feet, constructed 103 new beds and provided private rooms, bathrooms, accessibility improvements and other modern amenities. The total capacity will increase from 175 to 203 beds, a net increase of 28.
I am not arguing that the women staying at Norma Herr do not deserve privacy, safety and dignity. They absolutely do.
I am asking why government agencies can assemble $31 million for a major construction project, complete with a ribbon cutting and speeches, while an organization providing up to 45 people a night with shelter, food, showers and essential services cannot find $250,000 to survive another winter.
At its reported operating cost, Metanoia provides six months of shelter for approximately one percent of the Norma Herr redevelopment budget.
That should put this into perspective.
This Is What Our Priorities Look Like
County leaders are asking voters for higher property taxes to fund social services. The proposed Health and Human Services levy alone would renew the existing levy and add another 2.5 mills.
At the same time, Metanoia cannot raise $250,000.
This should be an instructive moment for County Executive Chris Ronayne and every member of County Council.
The county is financially strained. Community organizations are financially strained. The people who normally donate to these organizations are financially strained. Families are dealing with higher property taxes, groceries, insurance, utilities and practically everything else.
The county’s answer cannot always be to raise taxes while small organizations doing essential work are left begging for enough money to survive one more season.
Metanoia represents exactly the kind of service communities need. It does not require tens of millions of dollars in new construction. It works through existing churches and community facilities. It brings together volunteers, medical professionals, advocates and staff members who show up and do the work.
There is no giant new campus. There is no monument for an elected official. There is no need for political theater.
There are just people who have been doing this work for nearly 20 years on a shoestring budget and producing real stories of success.
Do Not Let This Organization Die
Losing Metanoia would mean losing one of only two seasonal shelters serving some of the hardest-to-shelter people in Cuyahoga County.
It would mean fewer beds during a Cleveland winter.
It would mean people remaining outside who will not enter the traditional shelter system, regardless of how many times county officials insist that other beds are technically available.
It could mean people dying from exposure.
I am putting this on everyone’s radar because Metanoia deserves to continue. County leaders, foundations, businesses and private donors should be working right now to find the money necessary to keep its doors open.
If you can help, donate directly to the Metanoia Project.
This organization helped people when they had nowhere else to go. It gave them food, shelter, dignity and the breathing room necessary to rebuild their lives.
Cuyahoga County should not let it disappear over $250,000.