San Manuel to give $500,000 for domestic violence shelter
The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians will donate $500,000 to a Catholic nonprofit to complete construction of a shelter for pregnant women and their children vexed with the harsh realities of domestic violence, drug abuse and homelessness.
On Wednesday, San Manuel tribal chairman James Ramos will tour the construction site and present a check to Mary's Mercy Center, which is having the 15,000-square-foot Veronica's Home of Mercy II built on West Victoria Street.
The nonprofit also operates the Mary's Table soup kitchen on Roberds Avenue.
"These community service organizations are right in the middle of the communities they serve, have been around a long time and are successful programs," Ramos said. "But sometimes, the funding is what lacks."
Mary's Mercy Center opened Veronica's Home of Mercy, a 40-bed facility on West Sixth Street, in 1995, but the demand for services and beds outgrew the space.
In 2002, the nonprofit embarked on a five-year fundraising effort for the second shelter on Victoria Street, which will provide 80 beds. It broke ground on the project in September 2007.
Construction came to a halt earlier this year after the economy took a dive, and the project was suspended indefinitely.
"With the economic downturn . . . we were running out of funds to complete it," said Mike Hein, program administrator.
Enter San Manuel, who responded to a grant application from the nonprofit.
The organization is also hoping to secure $600,000 from San Bernardino's economic development agency, which would provide the organization with the necessary funding to complete the $2 million project, Hein said.
Once funding is secured, the new facility should be completed within 120 days, Hein said.
San Manuel has long played a philanthropic role in giving community service programs a needed boost in times of financial straits.
In October, the tribe gave $100,000 to the Home of Neighborly Service, an 86-year-old youth community center in San Bernardino that had fallen into disrepair. The donation provided the funds needed to overhaul the building and provide new boxing equipment for the kids, among other things.
In this case, Ramos said the tribe was moved by the role Veronica's Home of Mercy plays in the community.
"These economic times are bad for everybody, but when you're a mother out there on the streets with a child and have no place to go, it's a lot worse," Ramos said.
Yet again the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians steps up to the local community and generously gives. The cities of San Bernardino / Highland truly have a good neighbor with these San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. Who could ask for more?