Hard at work for Habitat for Humanity.

May 6, 2011

Pearl Street Day Center is a community based day center that helps the homeless and unemployed. It is located at The First United Methodist Church on 55 Fenn Street open on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s from 9:30 am to 2:30 pm. The Center provides a broad range of services to homeless residents to have a place to receive mail, access emails, internet, phones, bathrooms, and showers, receive warm drinks and snacks, job development support, and guidance for service requests. Co-Act encourages folks to participate in volunteer work as a means to build resumes and references needed to secure future jobs.

This is a newly established placement for BCC service-learning students as of the spring 2011 semester. The service-learning students who have participated at the Pearl Street Day Center: constructed a resource directory which lists all the services in Berkshire County made especially for the Center; created a book of recipes to be used in future culinary activities; and assisted job seekers with computer skills.

Building skills in a project set up by the Pearl Street Day Center.

Future projects for service-learning students involve: recruiting additional unemployed and homeless people for volunteer work crews to do community service projects; assessing the work skills and qualities of these job seekers; working in the kitchen for culinary training; helping people set up email addresses and assistance with computers in general; help with technical equipment and performing in future music events; and becoming involved with Co-Act’s Food Net which includes taking organically grown produce from local Berkshire County community gardens and distributing it to low income families and food pantries in the county.

We look forward to a productive fall semester with the Pearl Street Day Center!