The staff, board and volunteers of St. Elizabeth Shelter are deeply saddened and concerned about the recent violent death that occurred near our Alarid Street Shelter and Resource Center. At the time, some did not realize that the individuals involved in the violence were not our clients, but rather neighbors residing in a nearby apartment building who were in no way connected with St. Elizabeth.

Because of this unfortunate event, as well as some concerns expressed in regards to the safety and effectiveness of our programs, we would like to take this opportunity to share with you the services and programs we are able to provide with the continued support of our community.

For more than 24 years, St. Elizabeth Shelter has worked to improve living conditions and outcomes for homeless individuals.

Today, we operate two emergency shelters providing more than 70 beds each night, three separate transitional supportive housing programs for homeless families with children or seniors and adults with disabilities; a twice-weekly Resource Center that offers free lunches, clothes, supplies, legal clinic, phone and mail service; a Homeless Prevention and Rapid Rehousing program; and a monthly Homeless Court.

In 2009, we assisted more than
3,000 people by providing more than 40,000 bed nights of shelter and nearly 50,000 meals. For those we provided shelter or transitional housing, 46 percent of emergency shelter clients, 73 percent of disabled adults, and 100 percent of seniors and families moved into permanent housing.

These results would never have been possible without the highest regard for, and strict adherence to, best practices in terms of safety and management.

Today, in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression, families comprise 37.5 percent of the nation's overall homeless population.

In response, St. Elizabeth opened Casa Familia, a new emergency shelter just for homeless women and families with children, last November. Before it opened, there were only six beds for women and one room for a single family available year-round in Santa Fe and all of Northern New Mexico.

Now there is a dedicated facility with 16 beds for single women and five separate rooms for individual families, along with a large kitchen, a dining room, TV/play room, reception area, laundry room, donation room and outdoor patio.

In addition to emergency food and shelter, our staff provides intensive case management and counseling to assist the women and families in accessing health care, employment (if feasible, depending on their situation), applicable benefits and enrollment in school. Like all our programs, the goal is to place all residents in permanent housing and return them to independent living as quickly as possible.

But none of this would be possible without community support. From our dedicated volunteers and generous donors to all those who drop off food, clothes and supplies, we thank you for helping us to continue providing the resources that enable so many to get back on their feet with a fresh start. As you can imagine, our need is great this year, particularly for monetary donations, and we welcome any help you can give us.

Deborah Tang of Santa Fe has been the executive director of St. Elizabeth Shelter since 2005.