The Oklahoman

Tiny homes make big impact for Norman people in need

- NORMAN — Carla Hinton Faith editor The Oklahoman USA TODAY NETWORK

Amother and her two sons lived in a car for about two months until someone told her about a local nonprofit that might put the family up in a hotel for a few weeks. h Kristen Bohannan said she contacted Food & Shelter Inc. and the organizati­on got her a hotel room that very day.

However, the hotel room wasn’t the only thing the beleaguere­d mom received. Two weeks later, she was given the keys to one of the tiny homes in the Gene and Judy McKown Village at Food & Shelter Inc.

Bohannan and her sons, ages 2 and 3, consider their cottage on the nonprofit’s property, 201 Reed Ave., their much-needed home. She said she recently earned her administra­tion assistant certification from a local college and recently got a job.

“I don’t know where I would be without Food & Shelter,” she said. “In all honesty, they were a godsend.”

Food & Shelter was started in 1983 by a group of people from McFarlin Memorial United Methodist Church who were led to begin feeding hungry community members from their church basement. The meal ministry evolved into the current organizati­on, which is continuing the mission that began 38 years ago.

The tiny home village where Bohannan’s family resides is a successful example of how a community can solve temporary housing needs. The Rev. Bo Ireland, senior minister at Clark Memorial United Methodist Church

 ?? PHOTOS BY CHRIS LANDSBERGE­R/THE OKLAHOMAN ?? April Heiple, Food & Shelter Inc. executive director, poses for a photo near Gene and Judy McKown Village on the grounds of Food & Shelter, 201 Reed Ave. in Norman.
PHOTOS BY CHRIS LANDSBERGE­R/THE OKLAHOMAN April Heiple, Food & Shelter Inc. executive director, poses for a photo near Gene and Judy McKown Village on the grounds of Food & Shelter, 201 Reed Ave. in Norman.
 ??  ?? Tiny homes in the Gene and Judy McKown Village are shown on the grounds of Food & Shelter Inc., 201 Reed Ave. in Norman.
Tiny homes in the Gene and Judy McKown Village are shown on the grounds of Food & Shelter Inc., 201 Reed Ave. in Norman.
 ??  ?? Alan Screibel washes dishes during lunch service at Food & Shelter Inc. in Norman
Alan Screibel washes dishes during lunch service at Food & Shelter Inc. in Norman
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