"Tikkun olam” literally means to repair the world. It is a call for social justice and action, and to help with those who may be disadvantaged and in conditions without power.
The work and service of Capitol Hill United Ministries (CHUM) and The Women’s Homelessness Initiative (WHI) Team can best be described as serving our beloved community through education, engagement, and service - including clothing those in need, feeding the hungry, inviting in the stranger, and supporting local agencies serving the unhoused and their guests.
For more than three decades, Capitol Hill United Ministries (CHUM) has been a beacon of light serving Denver’s most vulnerable residents. Our ability to respond quickly and creatively to emerging issues - without salaried staff - has made a profound difference in the lives of those we serve and in the hearts of those who serve with us. It continues to be reported that within the organizations, nonprofits, schools, congregations and individuals who serve, there is soulful transformation that touches the community of Denver, at large.
The Women’s Homelessness Initiative (WHI), created fourteen years ago, coordinated through Capitol Hill United Ministries, met the need for more shelter space for women in a safe and welcoming environment. For over a decade, CHUM WHI was a lifeline for the most vulnerable women in Denver. During a 10-year period, every night of the week, we offered overnight sanctuary for unhoused women. 90,000 women found safety, care. They were seen, heard and supported by 1,000 volunteers.
When the pandemic struck, CHUM WHI community stepped up to meet the growing needs of the unhoused population, providing over 100,000 meals for 13 agencies, and hundreds of tons of needed and requested supplies to 11 agencies. Our dedicated volunteers come from many different ages, schools, book clubs, families, congregations, neighbors, individuals, in the Denver area. People’s lives are changed, in those who are serving and those who are being served. A difference is being made.
We wrote a book on the issue of the unhoused - Exposure Homelessness through the lens of art and poetry. And, we offered a variety of other education and advocacy opportunities....in October 2023 with a co-generation conference on Homelessness....150 invited and attended....young, old, housed and unhoused, the mayor, city council and others.
CHUM WHI’s goals continue - to serve those in need, educate our community, and create opportunities for advocacy for the community for those who are struggling and those who may be without homes.
CHUM WHI has made a significant impact in our community, serving Denver’s most vulnerable through the dedication of volunteers with minimal financial resources. Over 30 years, without salaried staff, we’ve relied on volunteers who give their time, talent, and resources. As the needs of our community grow, we need financial support to continue our work—feeding the hungry, providing essential supplies, and welcoming newcomers.
Your Support Matters:
CHUM WHI is a trusted, proven organization with a successful track record of delivering critical services to Denver’s underserved populations. Our model leverages a vast network of volunteers and community partnerships to provide essential services to those who need it most.
Additional funding enables us to:
The need is great, and your support will make an immediate and tangible impact in the lives of thousands of individuals who are struggling to survive in Denver. We invite you to assist CHUM WHI in this essential work.
The Women's Homelessness Initiative (WHI), coordinated through Capitol Hill United Ministries (CHUM), is a nonreligious consortium of over 50 diverse and inclusive congregations, agencies, and organizations, and more than 1,000 volunteers, supporting local human services agencies with donations of needed goods and sack lunches for the unhoused, and operating and supporting shelter programs for women and those experiencing homelessness. Our mission is to serve those in need, educate our community, and advocate for women who are without homes.
The Women's Homelessness Initiative (WHI) was founded in 2012 as the story of unhoused and at-risk women in Denver was heard. The executive director of Capitol Hill United Ministries (CHUM) gathered a group of concerned individuals who worked together to identify sites and recruit what would become more than 1,000 volunteers to offer hospitality and safe shelter every night of the year for eight years to women without anywhere else to go. The women were hosted at 14 sites in the Capitol Hill and Park Hill neighborhoods and the program was supported with in-kind contributions. In addition, more than 50 congregations, organizations, agencies, book clubs, and groups worked as volunteers to offer sanctuary to our women.
WHI is a grassroots program that significantly changes the hearts and minds of those in our community, both individuals and institutions, on the issue of homelessness. The organization has been touted as a program that has positively changed the landscape for women's homelessness in the City of Denver. Our book, "EXPOSURE Homelessness Through the Lens of Art and Poetry," clearly presents words of the heart regarding how we change not only the lives of those with whom we walk but the lives of those who serve. Those who have volunteered no longer see marginalized individuals in a negative or fearful way. They can never again turn away and not see our brothers and sisters who are without homes. This book is available for purchase on our website (chumdenver.org).
While the pandemic caused us to suspend our overnight shelters, we are hopeful that we will be able to reopen them in the months ahead. In the meantime, WHI pivoted and has continued to provide opportunities for our volunteers to stay engaged.
Specifically:
• Daily Lunch Program: Feed the Hungry
CHUM WHI’s Daily Lunch Program provides over 460 meals per week to service providers like the St. Francis Center Outreach, Urban Peak, and the Denver Public Library. These meals are prepared and delivered by volunteers, who have borne increasing costs due to inflation. Each daily meal delivery now costs about $150, resulting in monthly expenses of $5,400. Since the onset of COVID, CHUM WHI volunteers have created and delivered more than 100,000 meals to 13 agencies.
The impact of these meals goes beyond nutrition. They foster short but meaningful connections between volunteers and those in need. The rising cost of supplies is straining our volunteers, and CHUM WHI has begun providing direct financial support to sustain the program. With financial help, we can continue providing meals to the most vulnerable in our community.
• Monthly Deliveries: Give generously to those in need.
CHUM WHI also supports our partner organizations by delivering essential supplies like clothing, toiletries, and non-perishable foods. Transitioning individuals from homelessness into stable housing requires more than shelter; it demands a wide range of services. Each month, CHUM WHI’s volunteers gather, sort, and deliver these critical items to agencies: St. Francis Center, Warren Residence, The Gathering Place, and the Delores Project.
While volunteers donate many of these supplies, CHUM WHI spends approximately $12,000 annually to cover remaining needs. Approximately 3,200 individuals are served each month. Financial assistance would allow us to continue responding to the specific needs of our partner agencies and the people they serve.
• Circles of Care: Welcome the Stranger.
CHUM WHI has responded to Denver’s migrant crisis, by creating the Circles of Care initiative, a comprehensive program designed to support Newcomers (migrants). Many of these individuals arrive in Denver with little more than hope and a strong desire to secure work and stability. However, due to the complexities of the immigration system, they struggle to find employment and are often forced into precarious situations.
This program addresses their immediate needs, ranging from legal support, securing work permits, to providing housing and access to essential services. Since January CHUM WHI has given financial support for legal expenses, food, transportation, rent, clothing and other needed support. We are committed to further financial support and are now working with a Peruvian mother and three children who traveled through extreme hardships to seek asylum.
A new core group through CHUM WHI is creating a prototype for a wholistic approach to working with a family, that we hope can be replicated.
Financial support can help us continue the work that needs to be done to give ‘the stranger” a chance for safe and stable life.
• Overnight Sanctuary: Offer rest to the weary
For nearly a decade, CHUM WHI provided overnight shelter to unhoused women in partnership with 14 sites throughout Denver. More than 90,000 women were given a safe place to sleep, along with dinner and breakfast to-go, thanks to over 1,000 volunteers from congregations, families, and other organizations. Unfortunately, this program was suspended due to the challenges brought on by COVID.
We continue to explore ways to reopen the sanctuary, but several obstacles remain, including a significant turnover among our partner organizations and the many changes in the agencies serving the unhoused. Despite these setbacks, we remain hopeful that the sanctuary can reopen once the necessary resources and support are in place. Reopening the program will cost approximately $200,000, which includes hiring staff, purchasing supplies, and covering other startup expenses.
Many women who previously used the WHI sanctuary have asked when it will reopen, and the need for this service remains as critical as ever. We continue our hope to restore this vital program, giving unhoused women a safe place to rest and recover.
Organization name
The Women's Homelessness Initiative
other names
The Women's Homelessness Initiative, CHUMWHI
1984
Tax id (EIN)
84-0436513
Category
Housing & Shelter
Organization Size
Small Organization
Address
1100 Filmore St.Other
624 Lafayette St.Denver County, CO, US