Volunteers, shelters recognized during Miami-Dade’s Homeless Awareness Day – NBC 6 South Florida
As part of Homeless Awareness Day in Miami-Dade County, the county’s Homeless Trust spent the day Friday visiting dozens of their partners, volunteers and organizations helping shelter the unsheltered.
Amid a housing crisis in Miami-Dade County, those fighting to end homelessness made room to celebrate their progress.
“I was homeless for about two years. I had a serious addiction to crystal meth. It kept me out in the street, out of my mind,” Omar Herrera said.
Herrera found shelter and help at Miami Rescue Mission. He’s been clean for exactly a year and 10 months. Now, he works at Miami Rescue Mission, helping men who were once in his situation find healing and hope.
“It’s amazing and great to give back. I always said I wanted to be potent and not powerful,” he said. “I wanted the same help that was given to me, so why not give it back?”
Reverend Ronald Brummitt, the president and CEO of the Miami Rescue Mission/The Caring Place, and Ron Book, the chairman of the Homeless Trust, have been friends and partners for years. They said resources like shelters, rehabilitation programs, and food and clothes giveaways have helped them see a reduction in unsheltered individuals in Miami-Dade County over the past few years.
“Daily, we’ve got a little over 8,000 individuals within our continuum of care,” Book said. “Today is about celebrating those who make a difference in the community.”
Meanwhile, at St. Thomas University, about 1,000 students from over 25 schools also learned from Homeless Trust partners about what they can do if facing housing and food insecurity.
“Homelessness and addiction doesn’t respect anyone. The rich, the poor, white, Hispanic, Black — we all fall and make mistakes,” Herrera said.
Both Miami Rescue Mission and the Homeless Trust emphasized that anyone in the community can do their part to end homelessness. To find out ways you can help, visit www.caringplace.org or www.homelesstrust.org.
