The Refuge - Conway, AR
22-Unit Family and Children Emergency Shelter to Open in Conway, Arkansas
Embargoed Release: Nov. 29, 2023 – Conway, Arkansas
The Conway Ministry Center (CMC) is in the process of purchasing and repurposing a 22 unit motel facility to provide emergency and crisis housing exclusively to families with children and extremely vulnerable individuals experiencing homelessness.
In the fall of 2022, Faulkner County school districts identified 843 children experiencing homelessness, which constitutes 5% of the total homeless child count in Arkansas.
The AR Department of Education reported a 23% increase in homeless child numbers in the past 10 months. These children are much more likely to experience trauma, hunger, sickness, academic failure, and more from the devastating impact of being unsheltered.
Spring Hunter, Executive Director of CMC, shares that there are zero emergency beds for families with children in Conway despite this need. "The goal of The Refuge shelter and program is to provide temporary housing to those who meet these specific vulnerability criteria while going through an intensive case management process to secure long-term solutions to individual housing needs," Hunter said.
After five years of running a Winter Warming Station for the city, the Conway Ministry Center discovered that 19% of the clients sheltered had a disability with medical needs and/or were being directly discharged from an inpatient hospital stay. Many were chronically or terminally ill. Their medical needs required assisted toileting, special meals, wound care, transfer assistance, medication management, etc. There are extremely few shelters in the South equipped to provide emergency shelter for these individuals. The Conway Ministry Center will reserve space to provide temporary housing for these individuals who are at great risk of serious harm when left unsheltered.
"We are asking the community to come around this critical issue to alleviate family homelessness," says Hunter.
Find out more or donate to The Refuge at therefugeconway.com.
This contact info not for publication:
Contact: Spring Hunter
Organization: Conway Ministry Center
Phone: (501) 358-6098