Hello Community,

My name is Da’Monique, and I run a small program called Da’Monique’s Homeless Resource Initiative (DHRI). I started this program in October 2024 after finding stable housing for my children and me in May 2024. We were homeless for just over 7 months. I was able to build a support system for my family during that time, and I would not have made it through such a hard time without them. With this program, I have hosted two donation drives, one free DHRI Shopping Day, met with families/individuals 1:1, provided basic needs such as personal hygiene items, community connections, and more. On June 14, 2025, DHRI will be hosting its first Annual Community Resource Fair in West Springfield, MA. In August, there will be the second annual DHRI Free Shopping Day. Both of these events will be held at 108 Park Street, West Springfield, MA 01089. At this time, I have a goal of $15,000. All donations will be used to support this program in various ways. Monetary donations from this fundraiser will be used for storage fees, bus passes as needed, purchasing items for personal hygiene bags, rental trucks for future donation drives, and hopefully, one day, a place to have a thrift store for DHRI’s Closet. With DHRI’s Closet, I hope to have a location where individuals and families can shop for their requested items, outside of the one to two free shopping days I can host. Since starting this program, I have met with individuals who can’t obtain copies of much-needed documentation, such as birth certificates and replacement state IDs, due to a lack of income. Some of the money raised will be used to assist families in obtaining those items as needed. As I work with individuals who are at risk of losing housing, are currently homeless, or are getting back into stable housing, I created this program to break down large goals into smaller tasks with individuals I meet so that things are easier to accomplish. At times, when under stress, tasks that would be easy to navigate without added stress are a lot harder. Having someone, in addition to a caseworker, to work with who has been through the same situation as you can make things a bit easier. Since the start of Da’Monique’s Homeless Resource Initiative, I have assisted roughly one hundred fifty individuals. I hope to double that by the end of 2025. With your support, I can continue to do so on a larger scale. Thank you for your support. I am always looking for volunteers to assist with larger events such as our donation drives. If you have any questions, concerns, or know of anyone who needs help, please feel free to get in contact with DHRI via Facebook.