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Inside Madison Sander's commitment to make the world a better place for homeless families
Madison Sanders, the executive director of Family Promise of Athens writes a government grant report for rent assistance on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at the Family Promise of Athens office. “We harness the feeling that most people that go to any sort of faith, you know, congregation have of like wanting to make your community be in a better place,” Sanders said. (Photo/Sara Graff)
Madison Sanders comes to work not knowing what the universe is going to throw at her. As Executive Director of Family Promise of Athens, she’s constantly “putting out little fires.” Today’s agenda starts off with moving donated twin beds into the shelter. She’ll do some administrative work, clean the bathrooms, and will definitely write a grant report or two.
“So every day is a little bit different, you know, just kind of depends on ebbs and flows with the needs of the program,” Sanders said.
Studying poverty and why it exists as an undergraduate drove Sanders to realize her overall life purpose: serving others.
“When I went to college I was interested in figuring out like a way to use my like skills to make the world a better place,” Sanders said.
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Sanders joined Family Promise of Athens while completing her master’s of social work and a certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership at the University of Georgia in 2021. Prior to this she studied economics, education policy and poverty studies at Washington and Lee University and briefly did policy work in Washington D.C.
“She's you know, she's got all the organizational skills and the drive and the senses in terms of the grant writing, but then she's great in terms of the social work aspect and her sensitivity to what we're doing and why we're doing it,” Chief Impact Officer at Family Promise of Athens Clyde Whitworth said.
Sanders says she learned what it meant to be in service when she started attending church mission trips, but faith has always played a significant role in her life.
“Faith has always kind of guided like my, my kind of view of the world, and the importance to make sure that, you know, the most vulnerable and the most powerless are treated with dignity and respect,” Sanders said.
Sanders prepares a diaper bag, car seat and other baby supplies for a homeless family on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 at the Family Promise of Athens office. “We always say, you know, once you're kind of part of Family Promise and part of our program, we really try to stick with you until you feel like you're stable, whatever that might mean for you,” Sanders said. (Photo/Sara Graff)
Running Family Promise:
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Before COVID-19, Family Promise of Athens was only able to host 15-20 families a year but now they are able to serve around 100 families a year because of static sites, meaning they rent space from churches like Milledge Avenue Baptist Church where families can permanently stay until needed.
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Static sites help keep the cost of running Family Promise of Athens down because instead of paying for staff members and shelter monitors they have the assistance of volunteers. They still face the challenges of not having enough resources or assistance as Family Promise of Athens has only four full-time staff members and a long waitlist of families needing help.
“You know, with any nonprofit, it's just, it oftentimes can feel like the world is working against us, rather than for us and for our families,” Sanders said.
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Because rent prices in Athens continue to increase, Family Promise of Athens has a government grant allowing them to do more rent assistance for residents in need.
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According to the 2019 Athens Network for Southern Economic Mobility report, nearly 50% of Athens renters pay more than 30% of their income on rent. The development of the luxury student housing market in Athens has contributed greatly to this increase, leaving fewer affordable housing options for community members.
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“Something that I like to say is that when a family becomes homeless it's not always that they like run out of money but it’s that they ran out of like family and support and like a network around them,” Sanders said.
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Sanders believes the easiest thing that community members can do to help the homeless crisis in Athens is to be educated on the current situation and get involved in whatever way possible
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“People always say like, there are so many nonprofits in Athens, and that's true, but there's still a greater need than what we're able to provide,” Sanders said. “And so I always say like, even if it's not with us just find a way to volunteer that fits in your schedule.”
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To learn more information about volunteering at Family Promise of Athens, go to www.familypromiseathens.com
Why I wrote the story:
This story is newsworthy because homelessness in Athens continues to increase and due to rent increases and luxury student housing developments, many people in the Athens community need assistance. Madison Sanders is an unsung hero in the community as she works every day to help homeless families in need. I developed my interviewing skills through this process as I had to conduct three different interviews. I also had to ask deeper questions than I have in the past which put me out of my comfort zone and overall made me a stronger writer.