Published On: 02.13.24 | 

By: Alabama News Center Staff

Donations boost plans for Anniston, Alabama homeless center, but a little more is needed

Built in 1949, the red brick War Memorial Building on Gurnee Avenue in Anniston will be razed this year to make way for Martha's Hope. (Bill Wilson / The Anniston Star)

A project to rise soon in Anniston will be a “generation changer” in how the region addresses homelessness, local supporters said.

City officials, along with representatives of area businesses, gathered recently at United Way of East Central Alabama to celebrate multiple donations that will go toward building the Martha Vandervoort Center to End Homelessness, Martha’s Hope.

Jackson Hodges, chair of United Way’s subcommittee on homelessness, said the center is named in memory of Martha Vandervoort, a dedicated civic servant.

She said the Martha’s Hope center will also host a transitional living facility to be known as the Holloway House, paying tribute to Maudine Holloway, executive director of the nonprofit Community Enabler Developer.

The homeless center is projected to cost $1.7 million to build but at present, finds itself $265,000 short of that sum. It will be located at 1411 Gurnee Ave. in Anniston, replacing the War Memorial building that was erected there 75 years ago.

“This transitional living facility will offer 24/7 emergency shelter services, alongside essential social work and empowerment coaching. Furthermore, the center will collaborate with local nonprofits to provide medical prescriptions, health care services and career readiness training programs,” Hodges said.

Hodges was optimistic that the recent check presentation will be a “rallying point” for individual donors to step up to help with the remaining funds to build the facility.

“We’ve gotten these big organizations together; now we just need that little bit more … It’s going to take a community effort,” he said.

Homelessness in Calhoun County

Kyle Bryan, program director at the Martha Vandervoort Center to End Homelessness, updated those gathered for the check presentation about the recent homeless count in Calhoun County.

“We just finished our point and time count and our raw data shows that we have approximately 120 individuals experiencing homelessness, which is actually a number that would be down from last year,” Bryan said. “I credit that to our agencies collaborating and working together to provide housing for individuals and to connect individuals to resources in other communities where they can be better served.”

He said contractors will soon bid on building the new center, with groundbreaking slated for later this spring. “We are hoping that we will be open in January of 2025,” Bryan said.

“We would not be where we are without your investment in this cause and this project,” he told the crowd.

Martha Vandervoort

Vandervoort, who died at age 60 in 2015, had served as director of Interfaith Ministries of Calhoun County since 2007. She had been an Anniston resident since 1987.

Shannon Jenkins, president and CEO of United Way of East Central Alabama, spoke about Vandervoort’s love of the community.

“Martha, what an incredible individual for our community, and no better person for this center to be named after for the love that she had for those that were under-resourced and less fortunate and vulnerable,” Jenkins said.

“There’s no doubt that her legacy has continued to be felt in this community,” he said.

Dr. Kenneth “Buddy” Vandervoort, Martha’s husband, also spoke at the check presentation.

“I just want to thank United Way, First United Methodist Church as well as the city of Anniston for creating this vision — and our family could not have been more honored and humbled when the call came asking if it could be named for Martha,” he said. “She had a tremendous passion for this mission to help reduce and end homelessness.”

Anniston Mayor Jack Draper said the center will address an acute and critical need in the community.

“I think it’s evidence of what we all can accomplish when we do our work together. This is not only the government but this is nonprofits, for-profits, corporations contributing and donating, to address an issue like this, like homelessness.”

Draper said the way the community is banding together for the project also serves as a blueprint for addressing other issues.

“It really does take the community all coming together with government, for-profits, nonprofits, the faith-based community – all those are represented here.”

By the numbers

Numerous stakeholders and businesses have contributed to Martha’s Place so far, including the city of Anniston; Samco; the Alabama Power Foundation; ERA King Real Estate; Sunny King Automotive Group; and Webb Concrete & Building Materials, which will also provide materials needed to construct the center at cost.

To learn more about the Martha’s Hope center project and to donate, click here.

A version of this story originally appeared in The Anniston Star.

Martha’s Hope sign (Bill Wilson / The Anniston Star)