SHELTER
For our neighbors experiencing homelessness, the necessities that most of us take for granted—food, shelter, safety from the streets, water, hygiene facilities, clothing, and healthcare items—are not readily accessible. Our dedicated Valley Mission staff work diligently to ensure that all of our clients have the items they need to be healthy, comfortable, and independent.
Valley Mission is one of the few shelters in a 100-mile radius of Staunton who provides services to single men, single women, and families. While many shelters focus on either single adults or families only, Valley Mission recognizes that homelessness occurs amongst all segments of our culture. Our facility accommodates as many as 130 individuals at any given time with the following breakdown: maximum of 60 single men in our male dormitory, maximum of 30 single women in our female dormitory, and up to as many as 40 family units (depending on age/gender of children) amongst nine separate family rooms.
All dorms and family rooms are comprised of twin bunk beds, and while the men’s and women’s dorms feature large, congregate living spaces, the family rooms are each outfitted with their own doors for privacy as well as individual sinks in all rooms. Both singles and families are provided with a small amount of private storage space in our basement to keep their belongings.
A common misconception in our community is that Valley Mission requires residents to leave the facility each morning. Quite the contrary! Our shelter is equipped with a staffed dayroom that includes a seating area for adults, computer lab, counseling suites, an educational afterschool space, teen area, and family entertainment rooms outfitted with age appropriate toys and electronics. This space is open Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 5:00pm.
MEALS
The dining hall and chapel serve as two gathering places for the shelter, for both residents and community members. Meals are served three times a day on weekdays and twice each day on weekends. Those in our community who rely upon our meal services are welcomed, no questions asked. All of our meals are provided at no cost to clients and community members thanks to the generous donations of local individuals, businesses, and food manufacturers. Each year Valley Mission serves as many as 58,000 meals and provides emergency food boxes to approximately 150 families.
MEAL SCHEDULE
Monday through Friday:
Breakfast served at 6:45am, lunch at 12:00pm and dinner at 5:00pm
Saturday and Sunday:
Brunch served at 9:30am and dinner at 4:00pm
Local volunteers, churches, businesses, and civic organizations often assist in both the cooking and serving of meals on a regular basis. Serving or cooking a meal is a great way to begin volunteering with Valley Mission. To obtain a one-time or recurring meal service obligation, please contact our office.
In addition to shelter, food, and clothing obtained through our onsite clothes closet and thrift store voucher program, Valley Mission provides showers, laundry facilities, personal hygiene kits, supplies for infants, over the counter medications, and funds for essentials such as prescription medication.
Educational supplies are provided to both children and adults. Supplies that are required by our local school system are distributed at the beginning of the school year and throughout the year when children arrive at our facility. Valley Mission has an abundance of bookbags, notebooks, and other scholastic materials readily available for our children.