First Steps Homeless Shelters

My name is Matt Lehnardt, I am a handyman and musician. I am deeply concerned about the welfare of many of our homeless citizens who need shelter and a place of their own. I have learned that many have a hard time living in apartments and have mental hang ups that keep them from prospering. I want to make a difference by giving them hope for a better life.

This is the first shelter I made for a homeless man I met over a year ago who has not been doing too well. I was concerned so I made him this shelter. I am repurposing used items to make these carts.   It expands out to 7 feet for sleeping and closes up to about 4 feet to push around. It is lined with insulation, locks from inside and outside when closed up. Has a solar light and needs a portable heater. I used wheel chair wheels and found a window from a trailer to put on it. I presented this cart to my homeless friend just before Christmas. After checking on him in the last week, I found he has claimed it as his own and says it is perfect although needing some simple tweaks. He is taking care of it, organizing his things in it, and says because it is mobile, he is able to keep it. He has a homeless Hispanic friend with both legs amputated, who was checking it out for some time. Other homeless men asked me if I could make one for him. We are hoping with the ownership they feel having these shelter carts that this may be a good transition into helping them get into better community living.

Please support our efforts to make more of these carts. We hope to learn more about the homeless and how these carts work for them as we regularly check on those who receive them. We need financial support to get this off the ground and provide hope for a better community. We financed the first one ourselves but will need help from others to make any more of them. Thanks ahead of time for your support.