A Safe Place to Call Home
At just 16 years old, Jasmine longed for stability. She, her siblings, and her mom were homeless, frequently moving between hotels barely in their budget. For more than four months, Jasmine’s family’s transient lifestyle forced her to move between schools, friend groups, and a stable place to call her own. The teen yearned for the opportunity to enjoy her adolescence.
Desperate for help, Jasmine and her family made their way to the emergency shelter at the Carr P. Collins Social Service Center in Dallas. There, they found solace — they were offered a safe place to sleep, hot meals, showers, and supplies to meet their everyday needs.
The staff at Carr P. Collins immediately ensured their comfort was a top priority. Jasmine and her siblings were enrolled in nearby schools, where Jasmine joined the dance team. They learned that her mother was a survivor of domestic violence and connected her to the Carr P. Collins domestic violence shelter, where she received specialized advocacy, counseling, and legal services.
The family found refuge there for eight months until a Salvation Army partner organization that assists women and children who are victims of domestic violence helped provide rental assistance. They are now comfortably living in their own apartment, where Jasmine has her own room.
Across North Texas, The Salvation Army’s six shelters and senior living centers are housing 1,300 people per week, operating at and well above capacity. Families like Jasmine’s are living in survival mode trying to pay for rent, increased food costs, access to child care, and high transportation costs.
In 2022, the Tarrant County shelter system saw residents seeking assistance at twice the rate than they were in 2021. The Mabee Social Service Center, specifically, experienced a significant 68% uptick in the number of children served at its shelter.
Across all five of The Salvation Army’s Dallas County locations, the number of households seeking food pantry assistance for the first time was up more than 78% in November compared to October. The average length of stay in Carr P. Collins’ emergency shelter is about 10 days longer now than it was this time last year.
The Salvation Army of North Texas has been continuously adapting, expanding, and building upon its vast network service system to enable community-specific, God-empowered transformations for all those in need across the region. Families like Jasmine’s need the resources we provide year-round now more than ever.