Local program puts homeless to work in Colorado Springs
A program in Colorado Springs is putting people who’d otherwise be panhandling back to work.
The Uplift! program puts homeless to work with day labor jobs.
Thursday afternoon a group of about a half-dozen people cleaned up the Legacy Wesleyan Church.
From sweeping up leaves, bagging them and throwing them away, to picking up trash, the group worked for hours.
“Every time I come out here I push myself hard,” Will Willyerd Jr., one of the workers, said.
The group wore yellow vests with “Uplift!” imprinted on them, working to not only better the lot they were cleaning, but their lives too.
“This program alone you can see that there are people that wanna work,” another worker, Matt Reece said.
Each of the workers is homeless but are putting in the hours into cleaning, rather than on a street corner panhandling.
“I used to be the one there on the corner with the sign,” Neil Saxton said. “I like being able to work.”
The program was founded by Pastor Edwin “FedEx” Aldrich. He was inspired by similar programs out of Albuquerque, Austin, and Denver. He wanted to fill the need he saw in Colorado Springs.
“This may be their only income this week,” Aldrich said. “We want to take people who are living on the creek and don’t have any hope and say, ‘There is hope of something better.'”
But the Uplift! program is different than Denver’s. Right now the non-profit is funded all by private entities, where Dever’s program is funded through the city.
“We are a really tax-averse city. We don’t like new taxes. Pretty much every penny of tax that we have is spent,” Aldrich said. “There’s very little that goes to homeless services already.”
KRDO NewsChannel 13 asked the City of Colorado Springs if they are considering a program like Denver’s, but a spokesperson said they were not at this time.
Each day of work in the Uplift! program gives workers at least six hours of work, getting paid at least $10 an hour. Following their day of work, time is spent with job counselors.
GALLERY: Photos from Uplift! program work day
“All they really need is a desire and ability to work,” Aldrich said. “We’re bettering everyone in the community. This doesn’t just benefit the guys on the streets, it really benefits everybody.”
“It does give me hope,” Willyerd said.
Willyerd earned enough money through the program so he could buy an identification card.
“I was able to purchase my identification rather than using a voucher,” Willyerd said.
Aldrich said the program’s next step is expanding to more hours and locations to get more people working.
“By giving these guys an opportunity to earn it themselves, we’re also taking the burden off of the Catholic Charities and the Rescue Mission. That’s more money that they have available to help people who can’t work or people who have disabilities who really need that money and don’t have the opportunity to earn it,” Aldrich said.
Aldrich said any person, business, or community organization can hire the group to come clean up a park, neighborhood, or business.
More information on the Uplift! program can be found at their website.
