Non-profit providing G’tn homes for low-income families

Posted 7/15/16

Vincentian Brother Al Smith, Inn Dwellings' founder (left), and Sr. Rosemarie Jefferson, assistant director of Inn Dwelling's comprehensive afterschool program (right), are very proud of Germantown …

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Non-profit providing G’tn homes for low-income families

Posted
Vincentian Brother Al Smith, Inn Dwellings' founder (left), and Sr. Rosemarie Jefferson, assistant director of Inn Dwelling's comprehensive afterschool program (right), are very proud of Germantown resident Diana Striplet (center), one of their students. Striplet, 18, whose parents were born in Haiti, recently was awarded a full four-year scholarship to Haverford College. Vincentian Brother Al Smith, Inn Dwellings' founder (left), and Sr. Rosemarie Jefferson, assistant director of Inn Dwelling's comprehensive afterschool program (right), are very proud of Germantown resident Diana Striplet (center), one of their students. Striplet, 18, whose parents were born in Haiti, recently was awarded a full four-year scholarship to Haverford College.

by Sue Ann Rybak

The students at Inn Dwelling, a nonprofit organization whose mission is “to interrupt the cycle of poverty” through transitional housing and education, refer to Vincentian Brother Al Smith, Inn Dwellings' founder, as the “quiet storm,” said Sr. Rosemarie Jefferson, assistant director of Inn Dwelling's comprehensive afterschool program.

Like a soft summer breeze that turns into a blustery wind, his quiet presence is a force to be reckoned with. For more then 50 years, Brother Al, a clergy member at Saint Vincent De Paul Church in Germantown, has been working quietly behind the scenes to improve the lives of the poor in Germantown.

In 1981, he began Inn Dwelling, 109 E. Price St. in Germantown, to assist financially-challenged families to become self-sufficient by providing them with affordable transitional housing. It all began with the donation of one decaying house in need of extensive repairs.

What began as a simple housing project for one homeless family grew into a non-profit organization that believes a “rigorous education is the key to transforming lives and rebuilding communities.”

“Housing is and remains a compelling need of those who struggle to survive,” he said.

Brother Al said that thanks to the help of local churches and countless volunteers, he was able to renovate the house. “Upon completion of the renovations, we placed a homeless family in the renovated house,” he said. “The program then took on a life of its own. I purchased some houses that had been abandoned by their owners, and as word spread, individuals donated their homes.”

But Inn Dwelling doesn't just give a house to anyone. They look for working low-income or homeless families who have never experienced home ownership. Tenants are required to attend mandatory meetings to learn to become financially independent. After three years in the program, many families are able to obtain loans and live independently for the first time. Since 1998, 58 families have become first-time homeowners.

While Inn Dwelling still works to provide safe affordable transitional housing, its current focus is on education. In 1997 it expanded its mission to include educational services for at risk, low-income students ages 11 to 18.

“Poverty has a way of stripping individuals not only of material possessions but of their confidence, sense of belonging and sense of purpose,” Brother Al said. “Children, especially, are affected by these devastating realities. Our program builds human capital. No matter how poor an individual may be, he or she has his/her dignity and gifts. These attributes are muted because of the situations into which a child is born, leaving the child on the periphery without a voice, but Inn Dwelling reverses this reality. It promotes the idea that poverty can be overcome if a child feels enabled to 'touch the stars.'”

Sister Rosemarie added that almost all of the students in Inn Dwelling's after-school program, which runs from 4 to 6 p.m., Monday thru Wednesday, live below the poverty line. In 2012, Inn Dwelling partnered with Holy Cross Mission School, 144 E. Mt. Airy Ave. in Mt. Airy, to design the Sophia Program, a rigorous middle school program that runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. It is designed to prepare students for selective high schools such as Merion Mercy Academy, Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, St. Joseph's Preparatory School and Mount St. Joseph Academy.

“Inn Dwelling works to identify at-risk, low-income students who have the will to succeed and enables them to attend quality high schools and selective colleges,” Sr. Rosemarie said.

For example, Germantown resident Diana Striplet's future looks bright thanks to the financial, emotional and academic support she received in Inn Dwelling's high school program. Striplet, 18, whose parents were born in Haiti, recently was awarded a full four-year scholarship to Haverford College through QuestBridge Match, which links exceptional low-income students with colleges, scholarship providers and enrichment programs. She is also a recipient of The Gates Millennium Scholarship program.

Charles Arroyave, one of Inn Dwelling's first college graduates, now teaches math in the Sophia Program at Holy Cross Mission School. He attended West Catholic High School on a full-tuition scholarship and later graduated from Chestnut Hill College with a degree in education.

In a letter on Inn Dwelling's website, he wrote “Often times a child comes to Inn Dwelling hungry; more times that not, the child knows what it means to have their electricity turned off, leaving him or her with no access to a computer, or their gas turned off, leaving him with no access to a warm shower. The students, however, come positive, desirous of participating fully in our society and wanting to succeed in school.”

Sister Rosemarie said that before coming to Inn Dwelling, many of their students felt helpless because “they didn't have control over the things that were happening to them. They felt like they lacked academic stimulation and they lacked exposure because their parents couldn't afford to pay extra money to take them to museums and other places outside of their neighborhood. We tried to counteract this by providing after-school teachers who would not just teach them but foster a sense of competency and proficiency in their work.

“No one who comes to Inn Dwelling is alone. The students really care about the other students. Our students celebrate every other student's successes and support them in their missteps. This participation in a loving community builds confidence, maturity, right-thinking and good judgment.”

For more information, call 215-438-2195 or visit www.inndwelling.org.

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