Almost one-fifth of Audrain County’s population lives at or below the federal poverty level. Meaning one in five of our residents often has difficulty obtaining basic needs like food and shelter. The Audrain County Shelter Resource Coalition has housed the homeless for eight years during the frigid Missouri winters. During that time, they have been searching for a way to become a more impactful resource for our community. They began questioning what they could do to intervene at that critical point before someone becomes homeless and keep them in their own homes. Help is available, but t services are challenging to locate, access, and navigate for some clients. Job training, utility assistance, child care assistance, medical care resources, and more are available but are spread throughout the county and the state. Unfortunately, many people do not know how to access the services they need, which could make the difference between staying in their homes, couch surfing, or being on the street.

When they open for their ninth season in December of 2022, they anticipate opening a community resource center to help people obtain these much-needed services along with a homeless shelter to provide warmth and food. The trained staff will help people identify and navigate the complex systems of available resources. The community resource center will be a place where people can find resources to meet their basic needs and a place where they can grow life skills and opportunities through education and assistance. The center will feature space for community partners to host meetings and training seminars like computer classes and continuing education classes, as well as financial planning classes, job training classes, and job application assistance. In addition, they will prepare meals for a soup kitchen in the commercial-style kitchen and make it available for cooking classes. The new space will also mean that clients will have easy access to showers, washers, and dryers. Their goal is for Audrain County to be a place where everyone has access to the resources and opportunities to help them stay housed.

They are currently raising funds to make this a reality, and there are many ways to give.

They are participating in the CoMoGives campaign put on by the Community Foundation of Central Missouri. When donations are given through CoMoGives.com, that helps them become eligible for additional grant money. Those wishing to donate can also give at their website acsrcmo.org. Or mail a tax-deductible gift to PO Box 1002, Mexico, MO, 65265.