Update from Lifebridge
St. Michael’s has a long-standing relationship with Lifebridge in Salem, where we send teams to host lunches on Saturdays several times a year. Additionally, Father Stephen Voysey, who provided sabbatical coverage for Father Andrew in the summer of 2019, is a dedicated staff member at Lifebridge’s Grace Center in Gloucester.
Here is an update from the Lifebridge North Shore website on their current situation due to COVID-19:
Dear Lifebridge Friends:
As you are aware, Lifebridge North Shore has a regional approach in assisting homeless individuals and those in need of a safe environment. We serve this vulnerable population with three locations in Salem (Seeds of Hope campus), Beverly (River House) and Gloucester (Grace Center). The Grace Center is vital on Cape Ann as a day resource center for men and women founded on the values of acceptance, hospitality, and opportunity serving more than 50 people per day. We provide services and offer referrals to our partner agencies for mental health and substance abuse treatment, medical care, job training, housing, and more. Guest activities include breakfast and lunch daily, along with a range of programs from art, meditation, music and writing to playing bingo and ping pong. After conversations with city officials to further ensure the safety of our community, the Grace Center shifted operations to the Cape Ann YMCA effective March 30. This site is a closed 24-hour operation serving a maximum of 26 people. We are doing this work in collaboration with Action Inc., who is responsible for the night operations and The Open Door is providing food.