Donation gives Tent City families a home

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Donation gives Tent City families a home

The anonymous $5,000 gift has helped pay rent, deposits for 15 people

By Moreno

Nick, 4, and his 18-month-old sister, Ellianna Lane, ran around their new

home Friday, stretching their legs after having spent six weeks living in a

cramped motel room in Flour Bluff.

On Thursday, " Bluejay " Presley slept on a mattress in his new home

after living in his car for eight years.

The Lane family and Presley are among 15 people no longer homeless because

of a $5,000 donation made to the Homeless Issues Partnership by an anonymous

donor last week. The money was used to pay for deposits and one-or

two-months rent.

Amy Rhoads, chairwoman of the partnership, said there are three more

families that will be helped by the donation as soon as housing is found for

them.

'It makes me feel good'

" It gives us a chance to help a few people, " she said. " It makes me feel

good that someone was willing to help us do that. "

The anonymous donor told Rhoads to use the money to find homes for Flour

Bluff's homeless. Several of the people the partnership found homes for used

to live in the brush area in Flour Bluff known as Tent City. Earlier this

week, police issued trespass warnings in that area because the property

owners have said they don't want the homeless on the land anymore. They have

until Jan. 31 to move out.

Rhoads said that beside helping some find homes by paying for their deposits

and rents, the partnership's members have helped others by offering them

rides to the city's shelters and by letting them know what help is available

to them.

Lane, Nick and Ellianna's mother, said her family moved to Corpus

Christi six weeks ago so her husband could look for construction work in a

warm climate. Although her husband found work three weeks later removing

mold, paying for the motel room kept them from getting an apartment because

her husband's salary barely covered the $161 weekly tab.

'God was listening'

" The motel was draining us so much we couldn't get ahead, " she said.

" There's no telling how long we would have been in the motel if they hadn't

helped us. God was listening. That is all I can say. It was great. "

Although her new apartment isn't much, just one bedroom, living room and

small kitchen without furniture, she was grateful her children finally could

go outside and play.

" I'm just glad to be out of the motel, " she said.

For Presley, being able to stretch out on a mattress for the first time in

eight years was a strange sensation that caused him to wake up several times

during the night. He said a series of unfortunate events spiraled him from a

comfortable life in California to being homeless in Corpus Christi.

" It felt so good, " he said. " It felt weird. I'm so used to having to curl up

with the steering wheel in my belly. Having someone reach out is something

that I thought was not possible. "

How to help

To donate to the Homeless Issues Partnership, contact Amy Rhoads at

882-9302.

Contact Moreno at 886-3774 or morenom@...

January 26, 2002

Copyright 2002, Caller.com. .