Latest news with #DetroitRescueMissionMinistries
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
Detroit Family Gifted A Home After 2 Children Die While Sleeping In Van
A Detroit family was gifted a new home after two of their children died from the cold when the van they were living in ran out of gas. 'It took my two kids to die for y'all to help me,' Tateona Williams, the mother of the kids, told WXYZ a few weeks ago. 'It just don't work like that. It hurt losing two kids in one night. I don't wish this on nobody, and if you can get help, please go get help because I don't want nobody else to go through what I'm feeling.' Williams received the home Wednesday from the City of Detroit and Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, an organization that provides food, shelter and services to homeless people. The organization will regularly check in to help Williams 'create a long-term housing plan,' the organization told NBC News. In three months, Williams has to transfer the home's utilities in her name. 'DRMM will step in to help if she struggles, but we expect responsibility and accountability to build toward her independence,' the organization said, according to NBC News. On Feb. 10, Williams, who was living in a van parked in a casino parking lot with her four kids, noticed her 9-year-old son wasn't breathing. Williams called a friend, who took Williams and her son to the hospital. While they were at the hospital, the children's grandmother called Williams to say that her 2-year-old daughter was also not breathing. Amillah Currie and Darnell Currie Jr. were pronounced dead at the hospital. It is believed they froze to death. 'I lost the one who made me a mother,' Williams told WXYZ a few weeks ago. 'I lost a 2-year-old. ... My heart is breaking and I have two more kids to live for.' Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said in a Feb. 11 news conference that the deaths have to make the city 'rethink everything' they are doing. Duggan said Williams and her family reached out to Detroit's homeless response team at least three times with the latest on Nov. 25. Duggan said 'no resolution was reached' after the family asked for help. He added that the response team never proactively reached back out again either. 'We have to make sure that we do everything possible to make sure this doesn't happen again,' Duggan said. In a news conference on Thursday, Duggan presented a homelessness report and said the city set up an immediate shelter system in December, but Williams and her family didn't know about it because no one on the outreach team followed up with her after her November call. In his presentation, Duggan introduced a seven-point plan to improve the city's homelessness response, including giving special attention to finding families in vehicles and requiring site visits for all families with minor children. Homeless families in Detroit waited an average of 133 days in December to be placed in a shelter, according to data from the Coordinated Assessment Model. Man Crushed As Bulldozer Cleared Homeless Camp Ahead Of MLK Day Event Judge Blocks Further Sweeps Of New Orleans Homeless Camp Ahead Of Taylor Swift Concerts Gavin Newsom Issues Executive Order On Removal Of Homeless Encampments
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Detroit Family Gifted A Home After 2 Children Die While Sleeping In Van
A Detroit family was gifted a new home after two of their children died from the cold when the van they were living in ran out of gas. 'It took my two kids to die for y'all to help me,' Tateona Williams, the mother of the kids, told WXYZ a few weeks ago. 'It just don't work like that. It hurt losing two kids in one night. I don't wish this on nobody, and if you can get help, please go get help because I don't want nobody else to go through what I'm feeling.' Williams received the home Wednesday from the City of Detroit and Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, an organization that provides food, shelter and services to homeless people. The organization will regularly check in to help Williams 'create a long-term housing plan,' the organization told NBC News. In three months, Williams has to transfer the home's utilities in her name. 'DRMM will step in to help if she struggles, but we expect responsibility and accountability to build toward her independence,' the organization said, according to NBC News. On Feb. 10, Williams, who was living in a van parked in a casino parking lot with her four kids, noticed her 9-year-old son wasn't breathing. Williams called a friend, who took Williams and her son to the hospital. While they were at the hospital, the children's grandmother called Williams to say that her 2-year-old daughter was also not breathing. Amillah Currie and Darnell Currie Jr. were pronounced dead at the hospital. It is believed they froze to death. 'I lost the one who made me a mother,' Williams told WXYZ a few weeks ago. 'I lost a 2-year-old. ... My heart is breaking and I have two more kids to live for.' Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said in a Feb. 11 news conference that the deaths have to make the city 'rethink everything' they are doing. Duggan said Williams and her family reached out to Detroit's homeless response team at least three times with the latest on Nov. 25. Duggan said 'no resolution was reached' after the family asked for help. He added that the response team never proactively reached back out again either. 'We have to make sure that we do everything possible to make sure this doesn't happen again,' Duggan said. In a news conference on Thursday, Duggan presented a homelessness report and said the city set up an immediate shelter system in December, but Williams and her family didn't know about it because no one on the outreach team followed up with her after her November call. In his presentation, Duggan introduced a seven-point plan to improve the city's homelessness response, including giving special attention to finding families in vehicles and requiring site visits for all families with minor children. Homeless families in Detroit waited an average of 133 days in December to be placed in a shelter, according to data from the Coordinated Assessment Model. Man Crushed As Bulldozer Cleared Homeless Camp Ahead Of MLK Day Event Judge Blocks Further Sweeps Of New Orleans Homeless Camp Ahead Of Taylor Swift Concerts Gavin Newsom Issues Executive Order On Removal Of Homeless Encampments
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Detroit mother gifted new home after 2 children die while sleeping in van during frigid weather
A Detroit mother whose two children died from possible exposure to the cold this month while the family was living in a van has been given a new home days after her son and daughter were laid to rest. A video posted by the city of Detroit and the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries this week showed Tateona Williams receiving the keys to her home. "We had to fix it, prep it, furnish it, and then give them a good start so they don't have to go one day with no food or being outside anymore," the organization's CEO and president, Chad Audi, said in a video that showed community members stocking the kitchen with food. Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, which helps find permanent solutions for disadvantaged residents, said the home was freshly painted, and Williams received new furniture and appliances in the home that she can now occupy with her two surviving children. Amillah Currie, 2, and Darnell Currie, 9, died Feb. 10 after the van the family was living in apparently ran out of gas. Williams found the children unresponsive and not breathing and called either a friend or a relative for help, police said. The temperature in Detroit that morning was around 12 degrees F, with wind chills of 6 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Hours before the deaths, Williams had parked the car on the ninth floor of Hollywood Casino's parking garage. Two adults and five children, ranging in age from 2 to 13, were in the van, Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison had said. He said he believed the family was seeking shelter in the garage for safety and because they could use the casino's bathroom. The chief also said the family had moved around from various casino parking lots. The deaths quickly raised questions about flawed systems for helping people experiencing homelessness. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan called for a review into the family's request for assistance after he said that Williams had reached out to a homeless response team on Nov. 25 and said she needed a place to stay. The mayor said at a press conference this month that a resolution was not reached during that conversation and an outreach worker did not visit the family. The family had also reached out in the summer and the previous year, he said. The City of Detroit said in a Facebook post Wednesday that its heart continues to be with the family "as we stand by them, offering our love and compassion." "While nothing can truly ease their loss, the gift of a new home represents a pivotal step forward for both their family and community," the city said. "Detroit, let us unite in support." This article was originally published on
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Detroit mother gifted new home after 2 children die while sleeping in van during frigid weather
A Detroit mother whose two children died from possible exposure to the cold this month while the family was living in a van has been given a new home days after her son and daughter were laid to rest. A video posted by the city of Detroit and the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries this week showed Tateona Williams receiving the keys to her home. "We had to fix it, prep it, furnish it, and then give them a good start so they don't have to go one day with no food or being outside anymore," the organization's CEO and president, Chad Audi, said in a video that showed community members stocking the kitchen with food. Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries, which helps find permanent solutions for disadvantaged residents, said the home was freshly painted, and Williams received new furniture and appliances in the home that she can now occupy with her two surviving children. Amillah Currie, 2, and Darnell Currie, 9, died Feb. 10 after the van the family was living in apparently ran out of gas. Williams found the children unresponsive and not breathing and called either a friend or a relative for help, police said. The temperature in Detroit that morning was around 12 degrees F, with wind chills of 6 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Hours before the deaths, Williams had parked the car on the ninth floor of Hollywood Casino's parking garage. Two adults and five children, ranging in age from 2 to 13, were in the van, Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison had said. He said he believed the family was seeking shelter in the garage for safety and because they could use the casino's bathroom. The chief also said the family had moved around from various casino parking lots. The deaths quickly raised questions about flawed systems for helping people experiencing homelessness. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan called for a review into the family's request for assistance after he said that Williams had reached out to a homeless response team on Nov. 25 and said she needed a place to stay. The mayor said at a press conference this month that a resolution was not reached during that conversation and an outreach worker did not visit the family. The family had also reached out in the summer and the previous year, he said. The City of Detroit said in a Facebook post Wednesday that its heart continues to be with the family "as we stand by them, offering our love and compassion." "While nothing can truly ease their loss, the gift of a new home represents a pivotal step forward for both their family and community," the city said. "Detroit, let us unite in support." This article was originally published on
CBS News
27-02-2025
- CBS News
Watch Live: Detroit officials discuss report on city's homelessness response
Local News Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and other city officials will share findings of a report to improve Detroit's homelessness response. CBS News Detroit will stream live coverage of the announcement at 1 p.m. Thursday. —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— How to watch Thursday's press conference What: Detroit officials discuss report on city's homelessness response Date: Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 Time: 1 p.m. ET Online stream: Live on the player above and on your mobile or streaming device —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— On Feb. 11, Duggan tasked Deputy Mayor Melia Howard with reviewing the city's response to homelessness after two young children died from apparent hypothermia while living in a van in a Hollywood Casino parking garage on Feb. 10. Darnell Currie Jr., 9, and A'millah Currie, 2, were among five children and two adults in a van that was no longer producing heat as temperatures dropped well below freezing. Duggan previously said the family contacted the city's homeless response team on Nov. 25, 2024, needing a place to stay; however, there was no resolution. The mayor said the family also reached out last summer and the year prior. "It's a terrible day in Detroit as we deal with the tragic loss of two young people," Duggan said in a news conference on Feb. 11. "It's gonna make us rethink everything that we're doing. The heartbreaking part of this is that there were family shelter beds available just a few miles away ... But it brings home the point that having service available doesn't mean that much if residents who need them don't know how to access them." On Wednesday, the city and the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries provided the mother of the children, Tateona Williams, with a home for free for one year. Williams had been living in a shelter for the past few weeks. A funeral was held for Darnell and A'millah last week. Duggan will be joined Thursday by Howard, Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison and Julie Schneider, Director of the Housing and Revitalization Department. Officials will detail the city's seven-point plan, including how to access an emergency shelter, the number of beds available, housing service specialist phone center protocols, and homeless outreach worker policies. Anyone needing shelter and housing assistance can contact the Detroit Housing Resource Helpline at 866-313-2520 or visit any Detroit police precinct.
