Compassion for Campers Adapted and Evolved to Best Serve the Unhoused

Compassion for Campers made the front page in July 2020.  Sue Rekenthaler and Patrick Murfin set up gear for distribution at the First Methodist Church in McHenry masked for safety during the pandemic.

Two years ago, with most of the country still pretty much on Coronavirus lock down and most of the McHenry County unhoused were locked out of shelters and daytime places of refuge Compassion for Campers struggled to adapt to the new reality and get our friends and neighbors the gear they desperately needed.  We established twice monthly distributions at rotating church sites in Crystal Lake, McHenry, and Woodstock.  But the logistics of storing and transporting our supplies to and from the sites each time was daunting.   Worse, the difficulty of getting the word to our potential clients about our nomadic events meant that despite the critical need, we often served a meager handful of people.

Things improved when we consolidated our distributions at Warp Corp in Woodstock where some items were able to be stored for walk-in availability whenever the store was open.  

Andy Meyer and Sue Rekenthaler  with gear at an early Community Power Shower event at Willow Crystal Lake.

But the creation the Community Power Shower Events at Willow Crystal Lake, 100 S. Main Street last year meant we could finally help more people.  We are now serving almost 30 individuals and families on the first and third Friday of each month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

These events, now renamed Community Resources Days, will move to a weekly model in August providing laundry, showers, lunch, haircuts and as many agency services as possible each week.  beginning this month.  Compassion for Campers will continue to be available on First and Third Friday afternoons only as we cannot now afford to double our supplies.  The next distribution will be today, August 5 at Willow Crystal Lake, 100 South Main Street in Crystal Lake then on time on August 19.  

Our funds remain critically low.  Compassion for Campers is funded by donations from members of Tree of Life Unitarian Universalist Congregation in McHenry, some small grants, donations from churches associated with the Faith Leaders of McHenry County, and generous donations from the general public.  

 

Contributions to support Compassion for Campers can be made by sending a check made out to Tree of Life UU Congregation, 5603 Bull Valley Road, McHenry, IL 60050 with Compassion for Campers on the memo line or donate on-line at https://treeoflifeuu.breezechms.com/online designating Compassion for Campers in the drop down menu. The donations are placed in a dedicated fund and not used for any other purpose.  Tree of Life also donates all the administrative expenses of the program so 100% of all donations go directly to client assistance.

We are also appealing for direct donations of certain critically needed items from the public which can be dropped off at Compassion for Campers coordinator Patrick Murfin’s house, 522 W. Terra Cotta Ave. (Rt. 176), in Crystal Lake or can be deposited in a purple bin in the social room of the Church when the building is open.    These items include:

·         Two and three person easy to erect tents. Must be new or gently used and clean and in original carrying cases with all parts. No heaps of fabric and frames please.

·         New or like new single and double sleeping bags in their carrying bags.

·         Waterproof Camping Tarps 7.5' x 9.5' or larger.

·         16 oz. Propane fuel tanks for single burner camp stoves.

·         Bug spray—High DEET content wet and dry.

·         Mini-flashlights.

·         Please, no bags of clothing!

For more information contact Tree of Life Social Justice Team Chair Patrick Murfin at 815 814-5645 or email pmurfin@sbcglobal.net.

 

Devastating Storms a Disaster for the Un-Housed—Emergency Supplies Need Now

 

The series of drenching thunderstorms and gale-force winds that swept McHenry County this week and are expected to continue struck the homeless population especially hard.  “We know from experience that many camp sites were destroyed and ruined,” said Compassion for Campers coordinator Patrick Murfin.  Compassion for Campers is the program that provides basic gear, supplies, personal items, and non-perishable food to those who must live all or part of the month outside.

The program distributes supplies on the first and third Fridays of every month at the recently renamed Community Resource Days hosted by Willow Crystal Lake, 100 South Main Street.  The next event is scheduled from 10 am to 2 pm on Friday, July 15.

“We will not be able to meet the huge demand this time without immediate help from the community,” Murfin said.  “We are ordering what we can from our available funds from Amazon for delivery next week.  But it will not be enough.”

Compassion for Campers is appealing for direct donations of certain critically needed items from the public.  These include:

Two and three person easy to erect tents.  Must be new or gently used and clean and in original carrying cases with all parts.  No heaps of fabric and frames please.

New or like new single and double sleeping bags in their carrying bags.

Waterproof Camping Tarps 7.5’ x 9.5’.

16 oz.  Propane fuel tanks for single burner camp stoves.

Bug spray—High DEET content wet and dry.

Please, no bags of clothing.

Items can be dropped off at Murfin’s Crystal Lake residence, 522 West Terra Cotta Avenue (Rt. 176).

Compassion for Campers will also need monetary donations to continue our purchases over the summer.  The program is a ministry of the Tree of Life Unitarian Universalist Congregation in McHenry.  The program has a special dedicated account which the church cannot use for any other purpose and the congregation donates all administrative expenses, so all donations go directly to serving our clients.  “It’s the biggest bang for your charity donation,” Murfin said.

Donations can be made by check to Tree of Life UU Congregation, 5603 Bull Valley Road, McHenry, IL 60050 with Compassion for Campers on the memo line.  Give by text from your cell phone to 815 332-0643. Enter the dollar amount you wish to give along with designating Compassion for Campers.  Give online at https://treeoflifeuu.breezechms.com/online.  You can choose to give by credit card or authorized ACH bank transfer.  Again, designate donation to Compassion for Campers.

For more information contact Patrick Murfin at 815 814-5645 or e-mail pmurfin@sbcglobal.net.

 

Compassion for Campers Bare Shelves Urgently Need Restocking

Compassion for Campers shelves at Willow Crystal Lake for the next Empower Shower Event are nearly bare of most basic equipment.  Help us restock them before our next distribution on Friday, April 15!

On Friday, April 1 Compassion for Campers, the program which provides camping gear, equipment, and supplies to McHenry County’s unhoused population, set up in a new room at the Community Power Shower Event at Willow Crystal Lake, 100 South Main Street with plenty of nice shelving space.  Unfortunately, due to a drastic shortage of funds we were only able to purchase less than half of the usual order of the most basic equipment—tents, sleeping bags, sleeping mats, tarps, camp stoves, and propane fuel tanks.  By the end of the four hour event those new shelves were almost bare, and we had to turn down requests from some of our homeless clients.

Since our mantra is “If you see something you need, take it!” it broke our hearts to fail to meet the dire needs.  Worse, at this point we have less than $50 to place a re-stock order for the next distribution on Friday, April 15 from 10 am to 2 pm.  A typical full order from Amazon costs more than $900 and the order needs to be placed by next Thursday to get delivery in time.

We urgently need help now.  If you have ever though to donating this is the time!

Donations can be made to Tree of Life UU Congregation by check with Compassion for Campers on the memo line or online at https://treeoflifeuu.breezechms.com/give/online noting the designation of the donation.  All donations are placed in a dedicated fund that cannot be used for any other purpose and Tree of Life provides all administrative costs at no charge so that all funds go directly to aiding the homeless.

For more information contact Tree of Life Social Justice Chair and Compassion for Campers coordinator Patrick Murfin at pmurfin@sbcglobal.net or call 815 814-5645.