Group Seeks Support for New Facility to Care for RI’s Homeless
Monday, November 10, 2014
Since 2007, Martinha Javid and her team at MAE (Martinha’s Artistic Evocations) Organization for the Homeless have been providing healing treatments, hot meals, clothing, and toiletries to over 300 homeless individuals on the streets of Providence.
"We want to continue to raise awareness," says Javid. "A huge reason why I work with the homeless is because of how it was perceived in the Azores where I grew up. We had lots of poverty but no homelessness because there was compassion - everyone helped each other out. But in America our lifestyles are so busy we sometimes forget to be compassionate - we need to remember that they are other humans who need help; we have over 4,000 homeless in RI alone."
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTJavid's organization hosted its annual gala which raised over $7,000 this past October - but along with the other charitable donations MAE receives, it still is not enough for a facility.
"3 years ago [MAE] became a 501c3, we are hoping to get a physical location by next year to help people mentally regain a sense of self and give accessible healing treatments to those in need," says Javid. "We want to holistically heal them and help them find a sense of self before introducing them to the workforce - these people have a lot of anxiety in their lives and need help to cope."
MAE offers services such as therapeutic horseback riding, temporary shelter and housing placements, and creative and spiritual therapies to help the homeless community they service gain confidence, treatment and stability in their lives. Javid and her crew are often looking for volunteers and any and all donations are 100% tax-writable.
For more information, or to donate please visit their site or email Martinha Javid directly at [email protected] to learn how to volunteer.
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