Gateway Homeless Services, formerly known as Christian Service Center, was established in 1975 to provide social, educational and recreational services that benefit impoverished youth living in the public housing projects of north St. Louis.

Throughout the late 1970's and early to mid-1980's, the agency specialized in youth programming, including urban 4-H, softball and basketball teams, year-round field trips and camping, an on-site library, after-school tutoring, art therapy, and a host of other child-oriented activities.

Vision: A safe, nurturing home for all.

Mission: Gateway Homeless Services provides safe, nurturing emergency shelter services that empower homeless women, children and families to move into transitional and independent housing.

Values: By building effective relationships with organizations and individuals based on trust and mutual benefit, Gateway employs proven strategies that quickly move families into transitional and permanent housing. To achieve success in our efforts, Gateway Homeless Services will:

• Work to promote understanding and respect among all
• Work in partnership with residents, staff, volunteers, donors and community leaders to fulfill our mission
• Build excellence in service delivery and performance
• Create accountability and sustainability in all that we do
• Collaborate with community leaders and organizations to enhance the St. Louis City/County Continuum of Care to End Homelessness
• Advocate for the use of practices that work (best practices), community engagement, and effective legislation to end homelessness

Housing First Strategies:

• Prevention:  Helping families in crisis to keep the housing they already have
• Rapid Re-housing: Moving families quickly out of emergency shelter and into permanent housing
• Targeted Services:  Determining what families need and linking families to targeted resources
• Tracking Results:  Collecting and sharing data to improve program management and planning

 Critical Success Factors:

• Facilities:  A safe, nurturing emergency shelter facility for residents, staff, volunteers and community leaders
• Core Programming:  Empowering people in transition so that they can take the personal steps that are necessary to move into housing, thereby increasing our referrals to transitional housing and decreasing the average length of stay of all residents at GHS
• Organizational Leadership:  Building relationships of trust and mutual benefit with organizations and individuals in the St. Louis City/County Continuum of Care to End Homelessness, establishing Gateway’s leadership in emergency shelter services
  

St. Louis Continuum of Care to End Homelessness

Gateway Homeless Services is part of a collaborative effort in St. Louis City and County to end homelessness. The Homeless Services Network Board Program of the City of St. Louis is a community-based process coordinated by the City's Department of Human Services, Homeless Services Division. The program allows for a comprehensive and concerted response to both homeless and at-risk individuals and families within the City of St. Louis.

The program employs a Continuum of Care model; an approach to homelessness that is comprehensive, flexible and inclusive of all service providers. The fundamental components of this Continuum of Care system are:

• Outreach and assessment to identify an individual's or a family's need, and make connections to facilities and services;
• Immediate shelter as a safe alternative to the streets;
• Transitional Housing and necessary social services including, substance abuse treatment, short-term mental health services, independent living skills, and other services as needed; and
• Permanent housing or permanent housing arrangements.

The Program was developed to:

• Develop, coordinate and monitor new and existing program to make certain that the needs of the homeless and at-risk populations are met;
• Negotiate contracts with social service providers to deliver services, ensure that these services are monitored, to avoid duplication of services agencies and to ensure that funds are used both efficiently and effectively;
• Coordinate and direct the Homeless Services Network Board, a consortium of health and human services professionals, advocates, government officials, representatives from nonprofit agencies, and homeless clients from the metropolitan area.

Gateway Homeless Services receives support from the City of St. Louis, the State of Missouri, and the federal government.

Currently, 60 percent of Gateway's $1,062,000 budget comes from government sources. 40% comes from individual and organizational charitable contributions. Government funding sources include: The City of St. Louis Affordable Housing Commission, the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services, and the HUD Homeless Challenge Grant.  Charitable contributions come from many individuals and organizations who offer both monetary donations and in-kind support.

The goal of Gateway Homeless Services is to strengthen its performance to meet the requirements of its government funding.  In addition, we seek to build strong relationships with the individuals and organzations who are the backbone of our charitable giving.

These supporters allow GHS to serve 500 families per year in a clean, safe, emergency shelter facility, while providing services that support homeless individuals and empower them to take the personal steps necessary to move into transitional and independent housing.

Strong financial and in-kind support also positions GHS to build effective relationships with organizations and individuals based on trust and mutual benefit, and to employ proven strategies that quickly provide families with permanent, safe, and affordable housing.

Gateway Homeless Services supports the "housing first" approach which includes:

• helping families in crisis maintain the housing that they already have;
• moving families out of emergency shelters and into permanent housing as quickly as possible;
• understanding family needs in order to target services; and
• collecting and sharing data to improve program management, planning, performance and evaluation.

Gateway Homeless Services has fifteen dedicated hourly workers who are at the forefront of outstanding service delivery. The average number of years in service to Gateway by these employees is 8+ years, a record of commitment and attention to mission that is rarely matched in this nonprofit sector.

Our dedicated employees, working around the clock, 365 days a year, keep our facility open, safe and empowering.

As a 24-hour, 7-day-a-week facility, we operate three shifts and weekend shifts with a total of fifteen hourly staff, a remarkable accomplishment. The performance of the staff in providing daily emergency services allows our organization to provide shelter, three meals a day, and support/referral services for less than $25/day for each person in our shelter. We are an efficient, economical operation that prides itself in providing excellent services to our community at low cost.

The management team at Gateway includes:

The Rev. Dr. Martin Rafanan, Executive Director, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Toni Muhammad, Director of Operations, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Jennifer Gauthier-Lyke, Director of Resource Development, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Gateway Homeless Services has an outstanding board with dedicated community leaders whose stewardship and vision for and investment in our organization strengthens our current services and our ability to sustain our services into the future.

The Executive Committee:

Rob Harding, Chair - Owner, Formfast inc.
Lynn DeLean Weber, Vice Chair - Client Relations Director, Sextant Technology Partners, Inc.
Tad Dageforde, Treasurer - Bank of America
Jennifer Jones, Secretary - Comptroller, Rubin Brown

Board Members:

Elizabeth Blaney, MD. - Barnes Jewish Hospital
Nicholas B. Clifford, Owner, Clifford Sales & Marketing
Paul D. Eckrich, Treasurer, Jos. Eckrich Roofing Company
Thomas Glaser, Manager - Sales, United Fruit & Produce Company
Diedre Gray, Attorney
Kathleen Heinz Beach - Consultant
Jim Holbrook, CEO, Emak Worldwide
Doris C. Magwood, Community Volunteer, Public Schools
Diane Miller, Senior Vice President of School and Community Programs and Partnerships, Saint Louis Science Center
Bruce Morgan, KMOV Television
Philip Rousch, First Congregational Church, Webster Groves
Michael A. Stokes, Attorney-At-Law
Gail Watkins, Director of Hospitality Services, Barnes Jewish Hospital
Patrick White, MD - Barnes Jewish Hospital

Staff:  Martin J. Rafanan, Executive Director