Newly named Sheltered Inc. Board of Directors Chair Ross McGregor, a local businessman, said that the funds give Sheltered Inc. much-needed stability.
“It’s given Sheltered Inc. the reliability of a funding stream that we need,” McGregor said. “We are as an organization in a restructuring point right now ... and we’re really trying to get in there and work on some foundational issues, and make sure that Sheltered Inc. is in a good spot moving forward.”
Calabrese said on-site OIC staff will help Sheltered Inc. clients with things like getting new IDs or verifying current ones and enrolling them in OIC training programs that can give them the skills needed to become more competitive in the job market.
In August, Clark County filed a civil lawsuit against Sheltered Inc. for breach of contract and is seeking reimbursement of more than $500,000. This lawsuit stems from a county allegation that the nonprofit mismanaged funds for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or Prevention, Retention and Contingency (PRC) services, which provide work support and other services to low-income families.
McGregor said Sheltered Inc. is “actively working to resolve our differences” with the county but declined to comment further on the lawsuit.
Calabrese said that since city and county funding was pulled from Sheltered Inc., the organization has had to cut some jobs, making it difficult to retain existing employees and recruit new ones. OIC’s grant is for operations, not administrative costs, he said.
Now, Sheltered Inc. and OIC will need help from the local government to fund administrative needs, Calabrese said.
McGregor said that Sheltered Inc. will also reach out to multiple other local organizations seeking funds for these costs.
Sheltered Inc. has two shelters — one that serves single men and another for single women and families that are open 12 hours daily — and it manages supportive housing at Mulberry Terrace.
Its shelters are not currently at capacity, but that will likely change when temperatures drop, McGregor said.
McGregor said the nonprofit is looking for a new executive director. Sheltered Inc. will need to hire more help in the future, which McGregor said he hopes takes place in the first quarter of 2025 once all the organization’s needs and priorities have been identified.
Many people experiencing homelessness are already employed but have other factors in their lives contributing to their housing situation, while several others are unemployed, and a job can be an early step toward solid housing.
“Too often people still stereotype homeless people as unbathed, unkept men living under bridges, and in fact, that’s not at all homeless individuals,” Calabrese said.
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