Project underway at Mother Teresa’s Haven Men’s Shelter

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A project is underway in Wilkes-Barre that will help some unhoused men have a place to call home.

A place to call home before having this space, Mother Teresa’s Haven Men’s Shelter would move to a different church every month. Then during the COVID-19 pandemic, Saint Mary’s Church housed the shelter for about four years.

Now, the Diocese of Scranton is renovating the space above the St. Vincent de Paul kitchen on East Jackson Street, giving the shelter a permanent home.

“We’ve been temporary for four years the houseguest that would not leave and he’s been very gracious to us so being able to get out of the church basement and come to a spot we own this building and we’re looking forward to that,” said Joe Mahoney the CEO Catholic Social Services.

This permanent location, which is already owned by the diocese, will also allow them to have access to things they didn’t have before.

“This will be a permanent location and will have room for 20 men here it is on the second floor of the St. Vincent De Paul soup, kitchen, and that excites us because our clients were at the soup kitchen, which also has a food and clothing pantry will then be able to come right up here and this will be home,” explained Mahoney.

Program supervisors say they could not have chosen a better location.

“This is really a centralized location. We’re obviously in the same building as a soup kitchen in the clothing bank. There are medical services within walking distance where right the next building that way is Career Link,” stated Harry Lyons the program supervisor at Mother Teresa’s Haven

Also included in the renovation is the addition of showers for those staying at the shelter.

It’s a matter of basic human dignity as well as hygiene and health to be able to clean yourself up so we haven’t been able to offer that in years. We are super excited about that,” stated Lyons.

“When I started volunteering with catholic programs I thought oh I’m helping other people and then I realized I get so much more out of this. You know the reward that, the people we work with just talking to them,” noted Mahoney.

The Diocese says it hopes to have the doors open by Thanksgiving.

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