The shelter at the Salvation Army will close on June 1, leaving most people experiencing homelessness in Pine Bluff with no other alternative for short-term stays.
Lt. Rachel Perdieu — who along with her husband, Capt. Jason Perdieu, operates the Salvation Army in Pine Bluff — blamed the move on a drop in donations to the nonprofit, which has been located in Pine Bluff for many decades.
“The only thing that is closing is the shelter,” she said Tuesday afternoon. “The other operations will remain open.”
Mayor Shirley Washington said Tuesday she had just learned of the decision to close the shelter.
“I met with them last week,” Washington said. “They’ve known for a while but were trying to wait for an appropriate time to make an announcement. This is really disturbing.”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Perdieu said a staff of eight — two full-time individuals and several part-time employees — will continue to provide other services.
“All social services, such as utility assistance, food assistance, Christmas assistance, clothing vouchers and furniture vouchers will continue,” she said, “as will case management work. These operations will go on indefinitely.”
Perdieu said she and her husband, who has been the head person at the Pine Bluff branch located at 501 E. 12th Ave. for three years, were being transferred to the Salvation Army operation in Hot Springs and would not be replaced in Pine Bluff.
As for sheltering services, Perdieu said families and couples with children would be given hotel vouchers.
“We’re not yet sure what that will look like just yet,” she said, “but for single people and individuals, we will not be able to provide shelter services.”
Washington said the loss of businesses in Pine Bluff had made it more difficult for the Salvation Army to function.
“With the decline in businesses, there were fewer donations from those businesses and not enough doors for them to ring their bells in front of,” she said, referring to “Red Kettle” bell ringers who collect donations at Christmastime. “That was a lot of their funding.”
The loss of the shelter appeared to be a blow to Washington’s efforts to get a handle on the homelessness population in Pine Bluff. Her goal of creating a shelter in the old First Ward School has fallen short because of a lack of finances. That facility, called Opportunity House, has opened as a day room, from 7 until noon three days a week, with a goal of feeding people breakfast and giving them a place to wash clothes, shower and get help with documents, housing and job searches.
Opportunity House had a soft opening in early April and is set for a grand opening on Thursday at 6 p.m., when officials with Depaul USA, the nonprofit that is operating the facility, are scheduled to attend.
“This is a bad situation, no matter when the announcement was to be made,” Washington said, referring to the loss of the Salvation Army’s shelter. “But that’s the situation we’ll be in and it’s so disheartening.”
Washington said Opportunity House had intended to collaborate with the Salvation Army on more efficient ways to provide shelter services, such as taking the preponderance of the men who needed lodging while leaving the smaller Salvation Army space available for women and children.
Asked if the loss of the Salvation Army shelter would increase the effort to get Opportunity House in a position to provide sheltering services, Washington said yes.
“It does for me, in my mind,” she said. “I haven’t talked to Opportunity House people yet, but there is now an urgency to move ahead full scale. I will be talking to them today. We’ve got to do some fundraising to beef it up a lot. This is very, very disturbing and is a hard pill to swallow.”
Washington said she had been pleased with the work already being accomplished by Opportunity House, which has found homes and jobs for some clients.
“They’ve gotten off to a good start,” Washington said. “There was a testimonial from someone who was helped from Monticello. We want to build on that momentum.”
The reduction in Salvation Army services in Pine Bluff is apparently not unique to the city. Both Perdieu and Washington said cutbacks had happened both in Arkansas and in other parts of the country. Washington said services in Conway and Broken Bow, Okla., had been curtailed last year and that services in Russellville were also being reduced this year.
After a call from The Commercial, the Salvation Army sent out a news release Tuesday afternoon regarding the change in its Pine Bluff operation.
The release said the agency had been struggling financially for several years and had been looking for ways to provide services more economically. One change will result in a reclassification of the Pine Bluff operation, from a Salvation Army Corps to a Salvation Army Service Center.
The change will mean expenses will be reduced, “freeing up critical funds to support the vital programs and services it provides. It is hoped that these changes will result in more money available to serve those in need, thus allowing The Salvation Army to provide additional assistance.”
Said Capt. Scott Hoover, divisional general secretary of the group’s Arkansas and Oklahoma division: “We will continue to rely on the support of our donors and friends so we may help those in the greatest need in this community we love and are proud to be a part of.”
Perdieu said a decision had not been made as to whether to relocate the Salvation Army’s thrift store, located at 2901 S. Catalpa St., to the location on East 12th Avenue. Washington said the relocation was being considered because of a problem with theft at the thrift store.
The news release also stated that Sunday church services at the Pine Bluff location would be eliminated.