If you live in Michigan City, or La Porte County, you may know that ICPADS is our local homeless shelter, providing a safe place to stay and warm meals to our homeless population.
But how much do you really know about this organization that is so vital to our community?
Test your knowledge below as we share 6 fun facts!
1. ICPADS stands for…
The IC of our name stands for Interfaith Community, which highlights the fact that a group of churches in our community organized to start this mission to help the homeless back in 2001. At that time, it was known as the Interfaith Community Men’s Shelter. Yes, as the name suggests, the shelter only helped men at that point.
In 2016, the name was changed to ICPADS. PADS stands for Public Action to Deliver Shelter. There are other PADS programs across the country, and ours is modeled after these programs.
2. ICPADS is the only permanent emergency shelter program for both men and women in La Porte County.
By ‘permanent emergency shelter program’ we mean La Porte County residents who find themselves without housing can come to the shelter in order to be fed and have a safe, climate-controlled place to sleep until they can get stable housing elsewhere.
In 2017, we expanded our program from a mens-only shelter to also serve the needs of women and children facing homelessness.
The fact that ICPADS is the only such shelter in La Porte County highlights the importance of our work in helping one of the most vulnerable populations in our community.
Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. (Proverbs 31:8-9)
3. ICPADS is a nonprofit.
As an initiative of Harrison Holtkamp, our Executive Director, ICPADS became a 501(c)(3) organization in 2016.
Our charity status allows us to acquire grants and receive tax deductible donations from individuals and corporations.
4. In August 2020, we moved to a permanent location at Sacred Heart Church (8th Street, Michigan City).
Moving to a permanent location has meant BIG things for what we have been able to do in our organization.
Prior to securing a permanent location, the shelter rotated, being held each night at different churches in our community. As you can imagine, this was incredibly difficult from a logistics standpoint, and also harder for our guests.
In 2018, with help from the local Catholic Church, the diocese of Gary granted us the use of Sacred Heart Church. After renovating the space, we officially set up permanent residence in August, 2020, with men housed on the top floor, and ladies on the bottom.
5. So far in 2022, we have helped 75 new guests suffering from homelessness.
As guests vary in the amount of time they stay with us, we have hosted a total of:
- 3,628 bed nights
- 7,256 meals (which includes dinner and breakfast each day).
We have also helped 31 guests secure permanent housing so far in 2022.
6. Our work is made possible by…
Community support! Although we do receive some federal, state and local grant money, our work could not be accomplished without the full support of the Michigan City and La Porte County community, including both corporations and individuals. For more information on how YOU can join our cause:
- If you are a business or corporation in the area, please go here to learn about corporate giving.
- If you are an individual who wants to support ICPADS, please consider:
So now you know a little bit more about the important work and mission of ICPADS in our community. To stay up on the latest events and news as it happens, check back regularly for new blog posts!
