Interfaith chief's experience fosters empathy for homeless

Program provides volunteer assistance,
transitional housing
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By KIM HORNER - Dallas Morning News - December 2, 2003

Dallas, TX - The Rev. Ben Beltzer knows what it's like to be
one of the many homeless people who come to him for help.

The executive director of Interfaith Housing Coalition lost
his job, then his home, and went on welfare in Missouri
nearly 30 years ago.

Mr. Beltzer said he and his wife, Pat, and their four
children could not have made it without help from their
church community. He said he learned the difficult lesson of
how to receive. He started seeing "the poor" in a new
light.

"When I sat in the welfare office, I realized there wasn't
much difference between us," he said. "I may have had more
education but, psychologically, we were together."

A year later, Mr. Beltzer bought a business and got back on
his feet. In 1975, he founded the Hillcrest Ministries
transitional housing program in Liberty, Mo., to help others
do the same. And, he said, his experiences helped form the
program's philosophy of treating everyone as equals – the
staff, volunteers and homeless people.

The program was so successful that Mr. Beltzer came to
Dallas in 1985 to start a similar nonprofit agency, the
Interfaith Housing program.

After so many years at the helm, Mr. Beltzer plans to retire
as Interfaith Housing's executive director at the end of
December.

But he won't be going far. Instead of running the place, he
will start a for-profit consulting group, Interfaith
Management Corp., to help spread the program to other
cities. Although the names are similar, the new group will
be separate from the nonprofit agency.

The concept has been a catalyst for 14 ministries in the
United States. Locations include Waco, Cleveland, Kansas
City, Mo., and Raleigh, N.C.

On a $1 million annual budget, the Interfaith program
provides three months of transitional housing plus a new
one-year program for more than 350 homeless families a year.

The faith-based nonprofit agency does not receive government
funding.

Residents must find a job, pass drug tests and save $1,200
to $1,500 during their stay. Most families consist of single
mothers with two or three children. More than one-fourth of
the parents have no high school diploma or GED.

What makes the program unique is how it uses more than 200
volunteers to work with the families, Mr. Beltzer said.
Volunteers commit three hours a week to meet with a family,
helping them budget money or work on other issues. Through
the process, Interfaith Housing hopes to be as much a
ministry to volunteers as residents.

True justice

"True justice is when God looks down and can't tell who's
giving and who's receiving," said Brian Burton, the
executive director of The Wilkinson Center in Dallas who
said he considers Mr. Beltzer a mentor.

The Wilkinson Center provides food and other basic
necessities. "Ben Beltzer does an admirable job of
fulfilling that idea."

Interfaith focuses on helping residents become
self-sufficient.

"It's a hand up, not a handout," said Becky Anderson, office
manager of the Hillcrest program in Missouri. "They
[residents] have to be willing to make a commitment to make
their lives better and get back on their feet again."

About 70 percent of residents finish the program. Some are
asked to leave because they chose not to follow the rules,
Mr. Beltzer said, adding that the choice is always the
residents'.

When they arrive, Interfaith Housing participants list their
goals and then work with counselors and volunteers to
achieve them.

"Most of their life what they've heard is, 'You idiot, you
can't do that,' " Mr. Beltzer said.

Most residents want the same things – a job, to learn how to
budget their money and to be self-supporting.

"Most can't look you in the eyeball because they're so
ashamed of themselves," Mr. Beltzer said. "They need someone
to encourage them and believe in them."

Residents get child care, free rent, psychological
counseling and other assistance. Volunteers furnish and
decorate residents' apartments before they move in and
provide a toy or gift for each child.

"A lot of times our residents, they're shocked when they
move in," Mr. Beltzer said. "They cannot believe this is for
them."

Faith groups in other cities have been interested in the
program since Interfaith Housing won the Acton Institute for
the Study of Religion and Liberty in Michigan's 1996
Samaritan Award, over 700 other programs nationwide. The
institute lauded the program's success at helping homeless
people become self-sufficient.

Charities program

The Wilkinson Center and Interfaith Housing Coalition are
two of 21 agencies that receive funding from The Dallas
Morning News Charities program, which runs through Jan.
31.

The Dallas Morning News pays all administrative costs of the
campaign, so 100 percent of donations goes directly to
charities that provide food, clothing, shelter, emergency
assistance, job skills training and counseling.

As Interfaith Housing works to expand its concept to more
cities, the program is growing in Dallas. The agency plans
to open a 7,500-square-foot building next to its East Dallas
headquarters by the end of the year. The three-story former
crack house will house offices and computer labs for
employment searches, as well as an after-school program.

Mr. Beltzer said he's looking forward to his new role. But
it won't be easy to step aside from the day-to-day
operations.

"The hardest thing I'll do in my life at that time is stay
away," he said.

E-mail khorner@...
The Dallas Morning News source page: http://tinyurl.com/xhy3
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