Suvy Vernon: Hope House Essex

At the beginning of the meeting President Jan passed on Philip Smith’s apologies for the delay in publishing the next Bulletin due to illness.

Our speaker was Suvy Vernon from Hope House Essex. Her name is actually Sue but she is know as Suvy to distinguish her from a colleague with the same name.

Hope House Essex is based in Braintree, where it has two adjoining houses for homeless people. Each house can take two homeless people, so they can look after four at a time. The charity has five trustees, including Suvy, and two staff.

People become homeless for a variety of reasons but homelessness can exacerbate matters. When you are living on the streets drugs and alcohol may not be self-indulgence but a means of coping, particularly in cold weather.

Many of the homeless people Hope House looks after need help with handling money, which some of them have never had to do before. The charity is therefore looking for people able to assist with advice on handling finances.

Hope House itself needs help in raising the funds it needs to keep going. They are particularly seeking some who can help with grant applicaitons.

There are, of course, other ways people with a heart for the homeless can help. A lot of the homeless people who pass through the doors of Hope House have never experienced love in their lives. Hope House demonstrates in practical ways that there are people who care.