Carl Cook
Carl moved from the 2100 Lakeside Men’s Shelter to Procop House in early 2006. He moved on from Procop and successfully moved into his own one-bedroom apartment in 2008. In over 2½ years with us, Carl made great strides in his life and impacted the lives of many others. He is now over three years sober and has a full-time job with benefits as a cook at the shelter (his barbecued ribs, incidentally, are a local legend!).
In addition to getting his own life together, he was touched by God in a dream “to help the sick and suffering.” He asked CSA for some direction in this area – knowing that this is largely what we do by supporting those men ready to leave homelessness. We connected him with two groups – one serving men and the other serving women who were either recently incarcerated or still in the midst of homelessness. As Carl volunteered with both groups the idea for what is now Project Save, was born.
Using the tag line, The Homeless Helping the Homeless, Carl launched the Project Save initiative as an outreach ministry that serves the homeless – those living in a shelter or living on the street. Project Save provides them food, clothing, emotional and spiritual support, and job and housing referrals. Community Service Alliance currently serves as Project Save’s fiscal agent, while Carl seeks non-profit status for the organization.
Carl has worked hard and has seen the initiative grow from roughly $900 in the first year to a current budget of more than $12,000! Carl has diligently secured funding from generous individuals, as well as grants from several local companies and foundations. Today, Carl maintains Project Save’s office at Procop House where he and his band of volunteers and stipend workers use the office’s equipment and computers to create marketing materials to spread the word.
On the personal front, Carl’s hours were cut back at his job for budgetary reasons and he is dealing with some debt issues, but his will is strong, his energy is high and his focus is on the mission at hand – giving back in service to the community.
