(From left to right) Maryann Sudnick, Men's Shelter resident, and Dave Sudnick
Dave Sudnick has been volunteering with LMM's Men's Shelter at 2100 Lakeside for 15 years. What began as part of a church group that was donating meals to the shelter once a month, soon turned into leading bible studies for our shelter residents and regularly donating a variety of clothing, hygiene items and more. Sudnick and his wife, Maryann, most recently donated a large number of clothes to the men staying at our various hotel locations as a result of COVID-19, all in each of the 44 men's specific sizes.
"My Christian faith inspires me to be a blessing to all men but especially to those who are in need. As I like to tell the men, Jesus was the most famous homeless man who ever lived and it is Jesus that I follow," says Sudnick. When he isn't volunteering with LMM, Dave works with Joy-Care Ministries and True Freedom Ministries, organizations that support people experiencing homelessness and people transitioning out of prison with donations like the ones Dave provides to our shelter residents.
We are grateful for volunteers like Dave and Maryann! To learn more about how you can get involved, check out the story below.
Clothing Donations Needed
LMM's Men's Shelter at 2100 Lakeside is in need of clothing donations. Men's clothing of all types - underwear, socks, pants, shirts, shoes and more are all needed.
The shelter will arrange for safe outdoor drop-off to allow for social distancing. Please contact Facility and Operations Director, David Blunt, at dblunt@lutheranmetro.org for more information on donating.
#LMMCounts
Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry recently launched our #LMMCounts census and voting campaign! By helping citizens to register to vote and residents to be counted in the census, we're doing our part in leading the community toward a better future. The goals of #LMMCounts are:
Educate, advocate and empower citizens to register and vote.
Teach and promote 100% participation in the national census.
Collaborate with community partners to amplify the voices of voting and census advocates.
Keep up-to-date on the LMM website and our social media accounts @LMMCleveland for more on the #LMMCounts campaign.
Advocacy Updates
We are excited to share several recent actions taken locally to assist individuals and families facing economic hardships during COVID-19. Here's the latest:
Residents who are facing financial hardships due to COVID-19 and need help paying rent can now apply for Rental Assistance through the Northeast Ohio Rental Assistance program.
For residents in need of free, in-person tax preparation assistance or assistance getting their economic impact payments, the Cuyahoga County EITC Coalition has reopened! To schedule an appointment visit the Coalition's website or call 2-1-1.
On July 1, Cleveland launched it's Right To Counsel program, which provides free legal assistance to low-income tenants facing eviction, co-led by United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland.
Market at Home
Last week, LMM's Central Kitchen was featured in Greater Cleveland Food Bank's
Market at Home event. Market at Home featured various local organizations and restaurants on livestreams from the Food Bank's Facebook page every night of last week. On Friday, LMM Executive Chef Scott Teaman had the opportunity to highlight Central Kitchen, which
provides thousands of meals each week to those experiencing homelessness in Cleveland. You can re-watch Friday's livestream here (LMM is featured at around the 21:30 mark).
