History

Up until 2005, Brown County Homeless and Housing Coalition had worked for five years to secure emergency shelter for the chronically homeless.

- Two factors kept the Coalition from succeeding:

-     Lack of funding

-     Lack of a site for emergency shelter


2005-2006

  • Meeting at the Blackstone Restaurant.  Fr. Guy Blair offers the gymnasium of St. John the Evangelist School for a shelter.
  • Karina and Lou O’Malley offer money for the 1st  year operating expenses of the shelter.
  • The shelter is named C.O.T.S. (Churches Offering Temporary Shelter).
  • The Next Step becomes the oversight group of the shelter.
  • A COTS Advisory Committee is developed with Karina O’Malley serving as chairperson.
  • Pastor Tony Madden becomes the 1st Shelter Director.
  • COTS opens on November 19, 2005.
  • Crisis Center of Family Services provides case management.
  • A Request for Proposal is developed to secure an operating entity for the 2006-2007 season.
  • In June, 2006 Karina O’Malley steps down as the chairperson of the COTS Advisory Committee.  Kathy McMurray becomes chair and the Brown County Homeless and Housing Coalition take on the role as overarching overseer of the shelter.

2006-2007

  • The Crisis Center of Family Services becomes managing operator of the shelter as it successfully replies to the RFP.
  • Laurie Resch serves as Shelter Director, with Eric Butters taking on day-to-day operations of the shelter.
  • The name is changed to BC-COTS (Brown County-Churches Offering Temporary Shelter).
  • A Conditional Use Permit (CUP) is secured on 11-8-2006.
  • Safe Step is proposed by the New Community Shelter (NCS) in the summer of 2007.
  • GB City Council voted yes on the first reading; no on the second reading to supporting the establishment the Safe Step program
  • Fr. Guy, Deacon Tim Reilly and Mayor Jim Schmitt work out compromise of NCS operating shelter at St. John the Evangelist (SJE).
  • Oct. 31, 2007:  Board of Directors turns votes down this compromise proposal.
  • Oct. 27, 2007:  Deacon Tim delivers a letter from Archbishop Dolan to Mayor Schmitt informing him that the diocese will operate the shelter under its First Amendment rights.
  • The Diocese of Green Bay becomes the oversight body of the shelter.
  • Renamed St. John the Evangelist Homeless Shelter.
  • Mary Marks, on loan from St. Vincent de Paul, becomes the new Shelter Director.
  • Fr. Guy Blair is named “Person of the Year” by the Green Bay Press Gazette in recognition of his efforts for homeless people in Brown County.
  • The Diocese of Green Bay secures a renewal of the CUP from the City of GB.
  • April 23, 2008:  SJEHS becomes a corporation of its own while remaining a Catholic organization in relationship to the Diocese of GB.
  • Archbishop Dolan becomes Chairperson of the Board of Directors; Deacon Tim Reilly the President, and Dan Robinson the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees.

2008-2009

  • August 28, 2008:  Bishop Ricken becomes Bishop of Green Bay and Chairperson of the Board of Directors for the SJEHS.
  • A CUP is secured for the shelter season.
  • Mary Kelly is named Executive Director of the shelter.

2009-2010

  • The Board of Trustees and Board of Directors approve a renovation plan for the shelter.
  • A CUP is renewed by the City of GB in June, 2009.
  • Renovation is completed in October, 2009.
  • October 28, 2009: The dedication of the renovated SJEHS occurs.
  • May, 2010:  The main area of the shelter is dedicated as “Blair Family Hall” in honor of Fr. Guy Blair and his family for their support and inspiration that contributed greatly to the creation and success of the shelter.

Archive of public documents in Adobe Acrobat PDF format:

January 22, 2006 • COTS provides important, possibly lifesaving service, column by Lou O’Malley
August 31, 2007 • Bridging the Gap by Bishop David Zubik – A scraped knee and beyond
October 14, 2007 • Concern for homeless has personal roots, column by Fr. Blair
November 2, 2007 • Archbishop Dolan’s Letter to Green Bay’s Mayor Schmidt
November 4, 2007 • editorial in Green Bay Press-Gazette regarding Archbishop Dolan’s letter.
November 16, 2007 • Green Bay City Council gives approval to shelter
December 14, 2007 • The Compass, Volunteers step forward to assist at homeless shelter
December 30, 2007 • Rev. Guy Blair is Person of the Year
March 3, 2008 • Dcn. Reilly’s Remarks to the media regarding St. John the Evangelist Homeless Shelter
March 25, 2008 • opinion from Green Bay City legal department regarding constitutional rights of religiously affiliated homeless shelters.
July 29, 2008 • article on Diocesan website about the Year-end-report from Executive Director Mary Marks.
March 23, 2009 • Need for shelter renovations is announced.