MADISON COUNTY, Ind. – While adult homelessness is often highlighted, hundreds of children are often part of families that don’t have a permanent place to call home.
In Madison County, more than 350 students don’t know where they will sleep each night. Parents Mary and John, whose true identities were not used, sent their children to live with relatives as they’ve been homeless for more than 14 months.
“When you get so far down, you have nothing. I don't know how to explain it. When you have nothing, it is hard to start over,” said Mary.
While the couple’s three children have a roof over their head, Mary and John have been living on the street.
“We don’t want them to think they’re different in any way,” said John.
City leaders said the situation is not uncommon.
“We see kids with families who are what we call couch surfing, when you’re going from one place to the next,” said Terri Park, executive director of Community Partners for Child Safety. “It’s an issue we see quite a bit.”
Mary and John found assistance at The Christian Center where they were given blankets and other items.
To help other families in need, center officials have plans to convert a vacant home – soon to be called Eleos Center - into a space that will provide a place for homeless people to shower, receive mail and more.
"Anyone can come in, they can shower, they can get cleaned up, they'll have a mailing address, they can wash their clothes. It's going to be a hub for service providers,” said Eric Foley, The Christian Center operations director.
He said the plan is to open the center in the fall of 2018 so families like Mary, John and their three children can seek help.
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