St. Francis Center

St. Francis Center (SFC) was established in June 1983 by the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado in response to the increasing number of people who were homeless and seeking assistance throughout metro Denver, especially near St. John's Cathedral. Initially, St. Francis Center was simply a safe place where individuals could congregate and take refuge from street predators and inclement weather. Today, SFC's services are significantly broader in scope. The SFC Day Program has grown to include several components: Basic Services (which includes showers for men and women, storage, and a message and mail service), Nursing Services, Social Services and Adjunct Services (e.g., representatives from the Veterans Administration, Denver Health and Catholic Worker Soup Kitchen). In addition to the Day Program, SFC has an Employment Program, a Housing Program (providing transitional and permanent housing), and an Outreach Program. The Employment Program was one of St. Francis Center's first expansions of service. It opened in 1988, and was a joint effort of St. Francis Center and Trinity United Methodist Church. It has evolved significantly over the years and now offers both a day labor service and a long-term job referral service. The Housing Program began in 1997 when SFC and the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless purchased a building (Beacon Place) to offer 85 transitional housing units for people with mental health issues. In 2001, SFC partnered with The Uptown Partnership to provide permanent housing and case management for 20 seniors with physical, mental and/or substance abuse issues. This same partnership subsequently created permanent housing and case management for an additional 12 men who were formerly homeless (Anchor I) and had a chronic mental illness, and for 16 men and women who were ready for more independent living (Anchor II). In 2004, SFC partnered with the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District to hire an outreach worker to offer information and referrals to people who were homeless on the 16th Street Mall and surrounding area, and to serve as a link between members of the homeless and downtown business communities. The partnership was so successful that in 2005 the Denver Department of Human Services joined St. Francis Center and the DDBID to expand the Outreach Program to include four outreach workers and an outreach case manager. The Denver Department of Human Services also collaborated with St. Francis Center to establish the SFC Night Program in December 2004. The Night Program served an average of 175 individuals per night, many of whom had been referred by St. Francis Center outreach workers. St. Francis Center has always been located in the downtown area; its first location was a leased building at 2162 Lawrence Street. When that building proved to be inadequate for the increasing homeless population, a trust was established by volunteer, Connie Strouse Newtown, to be used as collateral to purchase and renovate a larger facility at 2323 Curtis Street. Five hundred people attended the dedication service of the new facility, led by the Rt. Rev. William C. Frey, Bishop of Colorado. St. Francis Center has been at the Curtis Street address since 1986. The Reverend Bert Womack served as SFC's first Executive Director from 1983 to 1994, resigning to become a full-time Canon to the Ordinary for the Episcopal Diocese. Tom Luehrs was named his successor and has been the Executive Director from 1994 to the present. Since 2002, Mr. Luehrs has served as the President of the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative, a coalition of homeless service providers in the seven-county Denver metropolitan dedicated to coordinating the delivery of housing and services to people who are homeless. He was appointed to the Mayor's Commission to End Homelessness in 2004. St Francis Center has received two Episcopal designations, a special Congregation of the Diocese of Colorado (1984) and Jubilee Ministry Center (1986). In 1991, St. Francis Center became incorporated as a not-for-profit organization through the State of Colorado, and in 1995, SFC served as an advisor and model for the Grand Junction Day Shelter in Grand Junction, Colorado. St. Francis Center's mission has always been to offer a place of refuge for people who are homeless and to provide services with dignity and respect for the individual. We continue that tradition today, welcoming all who come whatever their religious or political affiliation.