Yvette Walker
With KVCR News, I'm Yvette Walker. This is IE Latino Voices, where we invite representatives from Latino led and Latino serving organizations to share their stories and their impact in our region. Joining me today is Dan Flores, Executive Director of Mary's Mercy Center. Thank you so much for being with us today, Dan.
Dan Flores
Thank you, Yvette, for the opportunity. I really appreciate the chance to be here.
Yvette Walker
Tell us about Mary's Mercy Center and their mission in our community.
Dan Flores
Well, Mary's Mercy Center is a Catholic faith-based organization here in San Bernardino. They've been here for more than 30 years, but the ministry really started even before then, with Father Mike, that started serving the homeless in the mid 80s by providing food, lunches and relief to homeless in the park wherever he could, and that has grown into this incredible ministry - this organization that now has three campuses, three programs. We offer a variety of services and support, from food nutrition to clothing to showers to transitional housing. And so we really are trying to do everything we can to help people turn their lives around. And it's been a blessing.
Yvette Walker
Please dig into some of those primary programs that Mary's Mercy Center focuses on.
Dan Flores
We have three programs. Our first program, Mary's Table, is our original ministry, and that's again located here in San Bernardino, where we offer lunch to anyone and everyone who needs it, six days a week. It's a hot made-in-house lunch that's an opportunity for people to have a great meal, to feel warm, to come inside, to have some communion with one another, and we do that every day, except for Friday. We provide that. We also have a food basket program once a week. We have showers, and we have a clothes closet. And many of the folks that take advantage of that are either individuals that are in need or find themselves on the street really looking for relief. But we're also fortunate that we can offer some housing opportunities. So we have two programs. One is Mary's Haven, which is our transitional housing program for women and children. Many of the families that we serve are survivors of domestic violence. They do have a history of substance use and need support, and we offer them up to two years of housing at no cost. They can live in the home together. We provide full wraparound services, and our goal is to help them get back on their feet. And we also offer something comparable for unaccompanied men, which, as you probably know, make up about 70% of the homeless population here in the county of San Bernardino. So we offer at Mary's village same opportunity - two years of housing wraparound services and support and a chance to get back on your feet at no cost to the residents who participate.
Dan Flores
What do those wraparound services look like?
Dan Flores
Well, a lot of the services that we provide typically begin with substance use recovery because we see that most of the folks that we serve have a history of substance use, but we also layer that with cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma informed care. We'll actually get them in contact with either IEHP or Molina to get their MediCal going, and so they have access to health care, mental health care, and all the services that they need. And we make sure that they have an opportunity to earn a GED or a high school diploma, pursue vocational goals, so that by the time they finish our program, they're not only mentally and physically well, but they have some sense of what their career and future looks like.
Yvette Walker
Is there a story that comes to mind when thinking about a successful outcome for those who serve?
Dan Flores
One of my favorite stories, and one that is continuing to evolve in the most beautiful of ways, involves a young lady whose name is Amanda. And Amanda came to our Mary's Haven program, gosh, more than 10 years ago, in fact, her son, who is a teenager now, was just an infant at the time. And she came to us because she was homeless and needed support and services, and so she participated in our program and did so well that we've actually hired her to work at Mary's Haven, and she worked for us for a number of years, and again, continuing to grow and do well. With support from Loma Linda, who provided us with a grant, we offered her a scholarship so she could pursue her LVN degree. And she recently not only completed her LVN, but she became certified and was just hired on as a nurse, working as a contracted nurse in a school district where she's serving students and doing very, very well. So her son's also doing well in school, and she has just thrived. So she's one of my absolute favorite stories to share, because I've just seen her grow so much over the years.
Yvette Walker
Oh my what a blessing. So I also know that you conduct an annual Gala. Is it coming up soon?
Dan Flores
It is. We have our annual Making a Difference Together Gala. It's coming up here on October 11. It's gonna be at the Glendora Country Club, and it's a fantastic evening of celebrating our donors, our staff, our volunteers, and, of course, the success stories that we love to share. And it's an opportunity for us to raise money for the ministries and the programs that we offer across the board at Mary's Mercy Center.
Yvette Walker
Well, we have a great audience listening today. How can they support Mary's Mercy Center?
Dan Flores
Well, first off, I would say, please visit our website at Marysmercycenter.org,. You can learn more about the organization and how we serve the community. You can also see us on Facebook and our social media platforms, and if you're interested in helping, we accept all kinds of support, whether it's a financial donation, whether it's a donation of time or talent, or an opportunity to donate an item that can be really used by a family or a person in need. And so we have a clothes closet, and we have other family outreach programs where we donate diapers, formula, other supplies that families might need. So there's lots of different ways to get involved. So I would encourage folks to please visit us at our website and reach out.
Yvette Walker
Thank you so much for your work and for spending time to share your story today.
Dan Flores
Thank you so much. I appreciate it.
Yvette Walker
Dan Flores is Executive Director of Mary's Mercy Center. Join us again next week for IE Latino Voices. You can find this story and others on our website, at kvcrnews.org/IELatinoVoices. Ie Latino Voices is produced by KVCR Public Media, and is funded by generous support from the CIELO Fund at IECF, uplifting and investing in the IE's Latino community. For KVCR News, I'm Yvette Walker.
