Generic Ministry, Inc

Generic Ministry provides planned, effective support for Boston homeless people on an on-going basis. We maintain a van stocked with clothing and seasonal wear, personal care products and military surplus blankets which are distributed weekly on Boston Common. Our clients are homeless men and women who depend on our services for daily living needs. Additionally, we provide food and beverages and we transport people in need to local and area shelters, hospitals and treatment facilities. Our volunteers maintain contact with people in treatment and/or placement and work on finding appropriate shelter for our homeless friends.

The Ministry is run by a small, dedicated group of Boston-area volunteers who prepare food, organize and distribute clothing and toiletries, and seek sources of funding and the donation of material goods.

We are formally ‘on the street’ once a week and engaged in related activities and support on a year-round basis. Our peak season is summer and our population served increases dramatically. The winter population of homeless people is, however, far more vulnerable and they actively seek and depend upon our help.

We focus all our work on the Boston homeless community, but have relationships with shelters and agencies in the Metrowest area of Eastern Massachusetts. We work with an informal coalition of other organizations who serve the homeless in a variety of ways.

These are all charitable services and we procure donated clothing from several area churches and schools. We have five groups of volunteers who prepare sandwiches on a rotating basis and we seek donations of goods from area businesses, grocery chains and retail outlets. Any surplus goods, clothing or food is regularly redistributed to shelters and to charities collecting second-hand apparel.

Our core group of volunteers dedicate from ten to twenty-five percent of their available time to the Ministry. There is a great deal of work needed to organize volunteers, perform outreach for donations and resources, to procure food, clothing and supplies for the van, and to maintain a safe, operating vehicle for the trip to Boston each week.

Generic Ministry is funded solely through private contributions and the donation of time and labor by volunteers. We are supported locally by several supermarkets who provide day-old bakery products, plastic bags and other items.

We operate solely under the name of Generic Ministry, Inc.