MacCanon Brown sanctuary offers neighborhood hope. Moore's grant lights the way. | Opinion

It was a full circle moment for U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore as she recounted how more than 50 years ago, she faced the challenges of being a single mother raising her children in a modest home on the 2700 block of North 24th Place.

To help make ends meet in the summer by stretching her food dollar, she made her daughter take her brothers to St. Matthews Church so they could get breakfast and lunch because she could only afford dinner.

At the time, few resources were available to help those in need and prevent them from falling deeper into the cracks.

Two weeks ago the Milwaukee Democrat, who was reelected to her 11th term in Congress with 75% of the vote, announced that the MacCanon Brown Homeless Sanctuary project will receive $500,000 in community project funding . The funds will support the construction of a stair tower, which is necessary to expand programming that reaches thousands of people in the 53206 ZIP code struggling with basic needs such as food, mental health services, clothing, and educational training.

Standing in front of the sanctuary, Moore said you can see the house where she raised her children. "I can't think of a better neighborhood for this initiative because it's a place of refuge that people desperately need," she said.

MacCanon Brown established homeless sanctuary in 2013 In 2013, MacCanon Brown and her team established a homeless sanctuary at 2461 W. Center Street to address the local community's needs. The five-story building, which had previously served as an abandoned furniture storage facility, required extensive repairs, but Brown had a vision for its potential.

Initially, the sanctuary started with no funding and only a handful of volunteers providing clothing and donated canned goods. Over time, it has evolved significantly. It now has a board of directors, a staff of 20 employees, 700 active volunteers, and 100 partners from various faith communities.

Every Tuesday, the center distributes hundreds of bag lunches, offering fresh fruits and vegetables, canned goods, bread, milk, formula, diapers, bicycles, air conditioners, and space heaters. Additionally, they collaborated with Children's Hospital of Wisconsin to provide lead tests for children .

"I've lived in this neighborhood for more than 39 years, and Sister Brown has been a beacon of light to all of us. She's an angel," said Kevin Collins, a user of the services.

Moore said the earmark funding will support the construction of the five-story external stair tower. The facility will serve as an employment hub, a food production center, and a community center with a full-scale kitchen and dining area. The move will also allow the center to provide more resources for the city's most vulnerable residents.

Such a facility would have significantly helped Moore when she lived just a few blocks away.

She recalled how they would sometimes check couch cushions and old purses for change for a meal.

Economic conditions have not improved in area over 50 years Today, the area still faces similar hardships, making the support of the sanctuary even more vital. Marc Levine, an emeritus professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, said not much has changed for the area, once considered one of the most incarcerated ZIP codes for African American men in the nation.

Levine's report, " The 2024 Index of African American Well-Being ," reveals that Milwaukee's Black poverty rate —30.1% — remained the worst in the large metros, and the Black and white disparity in poverty was also the widest of the 50 largest metropolitan areas.

Brown aims to address areas at the sanctuary where Black Milwaukee consistently ranks near the bottom compared to other cities. For instance, it ranked in the bottom ten in "deaths of despair," a rate that is 4.5 times higher than top-ranked Orlando and almost 50% higher than 25th-ranked Seattle, Levine's report showed.

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Brown said many of the people who use the sanctuary have been impacted by homicides and suicides. One of her employees has lost more than a dozen family members since the pandemic.

Compared to other metros, Milwaukee continues to lag in Black educational attainment, ranking last in the percentage of adults (25 and over) holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 43rd in the fraction of adults having a high school degree/equivalent or higher.

Brown is working to close that gap and hopes to provide scholarships to those who want to return to school.

Since the late 1970s, when Gwen Moore lived near the sanctuary, the median household income for African Americans has plummeted by almost 30 percent between 1979 -2017 (adjusted for inflation). Brown noted that while the statistics are daunting, the people of 53206 are more than the negative stereotypes often portrayed.

"The negative stereotypes that the public imposes on the people of this neighborhood are not unfair, and we are reversing the hemorrhaging of 53206 every day, and this staircase will be a beacon of light and hope for all," she said.

Grant will help sanctuary make use of all floors in building I have personally witnessed the growth of the sanctuary. While Brown maintains that the center is not about her, she ensures everything runs like a well-oiled machine. She hires dedicated people from the community and is always willing to offer a hug and lend an ear. When conflicts arise, she finds solutions to ensure that those with the greatest needs continue to receive support.

I've volunteered to pass out food several times. Helping people and seeing their appreciation is rewarding. However, it's frustrating that the city is not doing more to help them. To keep the building as a community resource, Brown decided not to take out loans or put the property at financial risk. She has started applying for federal grants.

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With $500,000 in funding coming in, new construction will start next spring and is expected to finish by August 2025.

Once the construction is done, Brown said they will use the entire 21,000 square feet of the building instead of just the 5,000 square feet they are using now.

Using the whole building will allow Brown to fully operate its aquaponics system, which will take up 70% of the third floor. In the remaining space, it will also have an environmental health education and training center.

David Holmes, a board member, and grant writer for the sanctuary, mentioned that the center has made significant progress, but they have even bigger plans in store. They aim to purchase two buildings on the block. Owning property will enable the center to provide shelter for individuals who currently have no place to stay.

During the Republican National Convention held in town this summer , I spoke with individuals who utilize the sanctuary's services. Many of them expressed feelings of being invisible and overlooked by local and state politicians.

The grant provided by Gwen Moore demonstrates that they are indeed being recognized. "I will never forget where I've come from," Moore said. And Brown's sanctuary will not forget about the community it serves.

Reach James E. Causey at ; follow him on X .