Citizens Foundation partners with N. H. Coalition to End Homelessness; pledges $90,000 to help 37 homeless shelters pay heating bills

Five-year total contribution to Shelter Fuel Assistance Campaign is nearly $400,000

Manchester, N.H.       (October 15, 2008) - With high heating costs expected again this winter, the Citizens Bank Foundation has announced its contribution of $90,000 to help homeless shelters across the state pay their heating bills this winter. This is the fifth year that the bank has partnered with the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness on this initiative, bringing its total contribution to $397,000.

“What we have learned is that many individuals in New Hampshire are turning to shelters in times of need, for housing, for food, for support – and staying for a longer period of time,” said Cathleen A. Schmidt, President, Citizens Bank, New Hampshire. “We recognize that these shelters often times struggle to meet their operating expenses as the weather turns colder and heating expenses rise. We hope that this grant will help those staying at area shelters continue to stay warm and have a meal as they work towards finding permanent housing and economic independence.

The latest numbers on homelessness in New Hampshire continue to be staggering. According to the Coalition, 5,609 individuals stayed at New Hampshire’s state-sponsored homeless shelters in SFY 2007. In addition, the length of time that individuals stayed in state-sponsored shelters rose from 31 days in 1998 to 49 days in 2007, and one out of every five people who stay in New Hampshire state-sponsored shelters are children. According to the New Hampshire Department of Education 2,100 homeless students attended New Hampshire schools in the 2007-2008 school year, an increase from 1,439 homeless students the previous year.

For shelters, rising heating costs do pose budget strains on critical programs and services offered to the homeless. Keith Kuenning, executive director of the New Hampshire Coalition to End Homelessness, said, "This generous donation of $90,000 from the Citizens Bank Foundation will go a long way toward assisting shelters throughout the state in helping individuals and families through the long New England winter. We certainly thank Citizens for its continued generosity and we welcome its community support and involvement. Without its foresight, many shelters in the state would certainly struggle to help those in need this winter.”

Kuenning said Citizens Bank’s support of the coalition’s homelessness initiatives helped garner the bank the coalition’s first “A Home for Everyone” Community Service Award. The award was established to recognize outstanding community service contributions made to solving homelessness in New Hampshire.

The coalition will distribute the funds from the Citizens Bank Foundation to area homeless shelters. New Hampshire shelters that will benefit from the donations are: Bridge House in Plymouth, Bridges in Nashua, Child and Family Services in Manchester, Community Improvement Associates in Keene, Cross Roads House in Portsmouth, Families in Transition in Manchester, First Congregational Church, UCC in Concord, Greater Nashua Interfaith Hospitality Network, Harbor Homes in Nashua, Headrest in Lebanon, Helping Hands Outreach Ministries in Manchester, Keystone Hall in Nashua, Laconia Area Community Land Trust Transitional Housing Program in Laconia, Merrimack County Rape and Domestic Violence Crisis Center in Concord, Monadnock Area Housing Coalition in Keene, Monadnock Center for Violence Prevention in Keene, My Friends Place in Dover, Nashua Soup Kitchen and Shelter in Nashua, New Beginnings – A Women’s Crisis Center in Laconia,  New Generations in Greenland, New Horizons for New Hampshire in Manchester,  RESPONSE to Sexual and Domestic Violence in Berlin, A Safe Place in Portsmouth, Starting Point: Services for Victims of Domestic and Sexual Violence in Conway, The Friends Emergency Housing Program in Concord, The Salvation Army Carey House in Laconia, The Salvation Army McKenna House in Concord, The Support Center at Burch House in Littleton, The Way Home in Manchester, Tri-County CAP Homeless Programs’ Ten Bricks Emergency Shelter, Turning Points Network,  the Tyler Blain House Shelter in Lancaster, Angie’s Shelter for Women in Manchester, Voices Against Violence in Plymouth, WISE (Women’s Information and Services) in Lebanon and theYWCA Crisis Services in Manchester.
.
About the Citizens Bank Foundation

Citizens Bank Foundation is a subsidiary of the Citizens Charitable Foundation, which is a charitable contributions vehicle of Citizens Financial Group, Inc., RBS Citizens, N.A. and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. The foundation’s support is focused on housing, community development and basic human needs.