Montgomery, AL, Jan. 28, 2010 – GOP gubernatorial candidate Bill Johnson and wife Kathy will spend the night in homeless shelters tomorrow to empathize with those who have no where to call home.

 

“With one in 10 Alabamians out of work, as many as 1 in 4 unemployed in some counties, homeless shelters are becoming the busiest facilities in the State,” Johnson explains. “Of the percentage still employed, their jobs aren’t guaranteed to be there next week. Even some who’ve given decades of service and worked their way to the tops of companies are being laid off.

 

“People are hurting, and we want to recognize and listen to the families who don’t have regular income and a house to call their own. 

 

“Having worked for over two years on homeless issues as a Birmingham City Councilor, I understand the complex challenges of providing shelter and assistance for our homeless population. In a time when the entire economy is suffering, I imagine shelters are finder it even more difficult to provide critical services with smaller budgets and a growing number of clients.

 

“Kathy and I will stay in homeless facilities tomorrow night to spend time with those struggling with the loss of jobs, homes and families,” Johnson continues. “We won’t be arriving with suitcases in tow, but rather with a few toiletries in a Walmart bag—the only belongings many of our homeless have to their name. To ensure we are not displacing someone else needing a bed for the evening, we have donated cots to the shelters.

 

“One of the casualties of homelessness is that it usually requires families to separate. It’s difficult to find a shelter that accommodates men, women and children.”

 

Bill will be staying in The Old Fire House Shelter. Sponsored by The Cooperative Downtown Ministries, the facility offers the only homeless men's emergency shelter in the community that does not have a specific time limit on the length of the stay.  In addition to providing shelter, the program seeks to get at the root of homelessness and develop a life plan for guests so they can live independently.

 

Kathy will spend the night at The Lovelady Center, a transitional facility that offers aid to homeless women and their children and requires residents to participate in a two-phase program that offers practical living assistance, faith-based recovery programs and employment opportunities. The program is for women who have lost hope and confidence due to devastating life circumstances, such as homelessness, domestic violence, addiction to substances or incarceration.

 

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Bill Johnson, former director of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) is a Republican Candidate for Alabama Governor in 2010. Johnson has been a member of Governor Riley’s cabinet since 2005 and led Riley’s grassroots efforts for his successful races for Congress in 1998 and Governor in both 2002 and 2006. He was the Governor’s representative on the Appalachian Regional Authority (a 13-state coalition) and the Delta Regional Authority (an 8-state regional effort). Johnson has worked with state and local-level economic and workforce development efforts; was instrumental in launching the Black Belt Action Commission, of which he was director during the program’s initial two-years; was active in launching the Rural Action Commission; and was the impetus for development of the Community Prison Re-entry (CPR) Network. Johnson, the son of a career military and civil servant, is a native of Birmingham. He and his wife, Kathy, live in Prattville and are the parents of three children.