If there is one local organization that exemplifies the Talbot County community’s ability to rally together to assist those in need, it’s Talbot Interfaith Shelter. Among other support, more than 450 volunteers from multiple faith communities, organizations, and charitable individuals provide supervision, meals, and fellowship for the guests at TIS’ shelter facility, Easton’s Promise. Local businesses have jumped on board as well, including several restaurants that provide monthly meals for shelter guests.
In years past, TIS has received delicious support from the likes of The Bartlett Pear, Out of the Fire, and Giuffrieda’s Pizza. Currently, monthly meals are being provided by the Easton Applebee’s, Olive Garden, and Subway. Incredibly, Applebee’s has been supporting TIS consistently since their 2013 Shelter Century bike ride. Pizza Hut also regularly delivers extra food from their lunch buffet for the guests at Easton’s Promise.
When asked why they provide meals for TIS, Subway manager Tommy Cassidy said, “It’s not about the press at the end of the day. I’ve got it, and they don’t, and that’s how I was raised. Our branch tries to help the community as much as possible.”
For their part, TIS is grateful to these restaurants for their assistance. “Each month, without fail, these busy businesses take time out to feed our guests,” says TIS Executive Director Julie Lowe. “It means the world to us, and is such a great treat for the folks in our shelter program.”
Talbot Interfaith Shelter (TIS) is a 501(c)3 organization based in Easton and serving Talbot County and the surrounding areas. The organization has developed a program that they call S4 (Shelter, Stability, Support, Success), which is designed to give guests access to a stable homelike environment, services, and tools that can help them break the cycle of poverty and homelessness and regain their independence. Once guests are accepted into Easton’s Promise, they receive case management as they move through an individualized plan, eventually transitioning into one of the shelter’s eight subsidized off-site apartments, where they incrementally take over expenses until they are fully self-sufficient.
Their vision is that no one in Talbot County will ever have to spend a night on the streets, in a car or in the woods because he or she cannot find housing. To learn more about how you can help, or if your restaurant would like to be a monthly dinner donor, visit www.talbotinterfaithshelter.org or contact Julie Lowe at 410-310-2316 or [email protected].
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