Westport-based Homes with Hope marks 40th anniversary
WESTPORT — This year marks the 40th anniversary of Homes with Hope, and the agency is releasing a documentary to commemorate all those who have been involved with it over the years.
Homes with Hope President and CEO Helen McAlinden said this documentary will be a way to “celebrate the people that started the agency, kept it going and the clubs and churches and synagogues that have been there for us from the very beginning.”
Homes with Hope started in 1984 as a grassroots initiative with the help from local churches, synagogues and residents. Unhoused individuals slept in the pews of houses of worship, and local leaders asked the town for help.
Westport offered a firehouse as a shelter location, which was eventually moved to its current location at 45 Jesup Road, and expanded to a plethora of programs.
The documentary is set to premiere on next Tuesday at an invitation-only anniversary event. After that, Homes with Hope will host multiple screenings for the rest of the community, McAlinden said.
A title for the film has not yet been determined, but they have finished filming and are in the process of editing. She said the producers interviewed almost 40 individuals who have been involved with the organization over the years.
The interviews will be complied into a film about a half an hour long.
Livio Sanchez is the award-winning director, producer and editor helping create the film. McAlinden said he has helped the agency with other projects.
“It’s a big deal,” McAlinden said about the anniversary.
In 2023, Homes with Hope served 43 percent more people than they did in 2022, which shows how housing and food insecurity is becoming more prevalent each year, she said.
But each year, the agency also receives more donations, which helps them house and support more people, she added.
“My goal for the documentary is to show that Homes with Hope continues to be a support to the local Fairfield County community for anybody with food and housing insecurity,” McAlinden said.
In 1982, the late James Bacharach established the Westport Community Kitchen, with a load of volunteers helping serve dinner. Churches and synagogues then came together to find solutions for homelessness in Westport, forming the Interfaith Housing Association in January 1984.
The Linxweiler House at 655 Post Road East became a transitional housing site that year. On Dec. 25, 1984, the IHA opened a men’s shelter at the former Vigilant Firehouse at 6 Wilton Road. Shortly thereafter, added a community kitchen was added to the shelter.
The shelter stayed there until 1989, when the IHA opened the Gillespie Center. Since that fall, all programs have operated continuously.
In 1993, the IHA opened the Bacharach Community on Wassell Lane, an emergency shelter for families with single mothers. Later that same year, the organization also opened Hoskins’ Place for single, homeless women.
In July 2009, the IHA changed its name to Homes with Hope, to better reflect the agency’s mission, a statement from McAlinden said.
Over its 40 years, Homes with Hope has only had three presidents, McAlinden said — Pete Powell, Jeffrey Wieser and herself.
Now, Homes with Hope has many programs, such as an emergency shelter for men and women, a community kitchen, food pantry, youth development programs and mentorships. The Gillespie Center is also set to soon get renovations to help expand its offerings.
McAlinden said moving forward, she hopes more small, affluent communities take strides to reduce homelessness and food insecurity. Oftentimes, it is left up to urban areas to address it, but she believes if all communities helped in some way, it wouldn’t be as much of an issue.
“Without such a wonderful community, Homes with Hope wouldn’t exist,” McAlinden said.