Sometimes when people hit hard times, they have a place to go. Sometimes they don't. In those circumstances, Jasper Newborn is there.
He runs the Friends of the Homeless emergency shelter, which provides a place out of the elements for up to 15 people each evening.
"At the shelter, we serve 10-15 guests per evening that stay overnight," Newborn said. "Our surplus of goods have been shared by a community that comes to the soup kitchen on a daily basis. Though we only house 10-15 guests per evening, our hands touch, maybe, 50, 60, 70 guests per day. With our clothing giveaway, our surplus items and more, they reach out and help our communities in many ways."
Not everyone needs emergency shelter. A number of people, Newborn said, are homeless but are able to double-up with friends or family. That may be OK for Kinston, but the situation in rural areas of Lenoir County is more difficult. And, there are some issues in assisting people from other counties, as well.
"We're getting calls every day from people in surrounding counties that need placement in shelters, with two, three and four children," Newborn said.
Some of the people Friends of the Homeless try to help have been forced out of public housing in Goldsboro, Greene County, and even the Kinston Housing Authority.
Newborn said that with some people, they owe money to a public housing authority and can't get a placement. With the KHA, there's a twist.
KHA Executive Director Rhonda Abbott said on Nov. 7 the agency has placed everyone they can, and has an extensive waiting list. The only way someone new gets placed is if someone leaves public housing.
And then there's the issue of the so-called fiscal cliff. KHA gets its funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
"With the sequestration they're talking about, the across-the-board cut (in funding) would be about 8.2 percent," Abbott said in November.
When things are at their worst, however, care isn't limited by funding from Washington, D.C. The Friends of the Homeless shelter has been operating with private funds for a number of years.
"We've been fortunate. Our budget has been met through churches, individuals, organizations and donations from corporations," Newborn said. "That's what's made our budget this year."
Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 or wes.wolfe@kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at WolfeReports.