Walkin’ In My Shoes strapped for operating funds BY MATTHEW OLSON molson@kenoshanews.com   Jo Wynn has spent the last six years of her life finding ways and giving support to help people rise above poverty and homelessness, a climb she herself made seven years ago. Wynn now needs the help of the community to continue the work of Walkin’ In My Shoes, whose needs and aims have only grown over the last six years. The lease on the building Walkin’ In My Shoes moved into three years ago, at 2211 50th St., is to expire at the end of the month. Wynn said financial donations have been scarce this year and the program faces a real danger of having to close its physical location. Wynn was homeless and without a job in 2004 until she was able to receive disability benefits, with the help of U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, that were previously denied to her. By the next summer she had started Walkin’ In My Shoes with a program to provide backpacks, complete with essential items, for those living on the street in Kenosha. The organization and client list continued to grow, leading Wynn to move to the 50th Street location. In the last six years she has added: n An emergency shelter for teens and young adults Clothes, food and furniture for people transitioning into housing Encouragement and assistance with getting people to seek health checkups Resources for raising children A teen drop-in center Making calls and networking with local agencies, businesses and schools to find opportunities and assistance for those who seek help from Walkin’ In My Shoes, the work that takes the majority of Wynn’s time. Wynn said she worked with 24 people and 25 other agencies in her first year of operation. She now counts over 100 organizations as partnering agencies and worked with hundreds of youth and adults in need, including 37 homeless youth and 75 others in need in the last month. “The reality is that we’re growing so big that I never thought I would take on as much as I have,” Wynn said. “Now that I’m being seen as a harbor of goodwill, I don’t want to give that up.” While the program has expanded significantly from its beginnings, Wynn said she cannot abandon the progress that has been made. “The world does not see what I see,” Wynn said. “I see things that the world needs to get on board with.” The world Wynn sees is the young man who lost a stepfather and pulled himself together to find a job, the young man who worked his way to New York to pursue his dream of becoming a fashion designer and her work to find organization that was able to cover the medication costs for a young mother diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. And Wynn sees that her work is paying off. Wynn said she believes there are less people living homeless in Kenosha and knows of many she was able to work with to find housing. “People are looking for me, they’re coming here,” Wynn said. Donations of clothes and other items have continued steadily, but Wynn said monetary donations have been rare since last winter, when the community rallied to donate enough money to cover the $5,000 Wynn missed out on by failing to have a grant application in on time. Besides utility costs and rent, Wynn said the agency also pays for documents and records needed for clients to apply for jobs and residency. The yearly costs for the program’s operations are about $25,000 to $30,000. Wynn, who does not take a salary and has largely funded the program through her retirement fund, said without help again from the community, the physical location for Walkin’ In My Shoes may have to close. “It’s a one-stop center for teenagers and people in need,” Wynn said. “It’s not so I can have an office, It’s more to have an office for the youth. We would no longer be able to have a drop-in center. It would be a lot to give up.” Wynn has plans for the future she wants to bring to fruition, such as starting a community garden as a way to raise funds and create jobs and starting an academy for homeless youth. But Wynn hopes she will not have to give up on those plans or her expanded services. “Sometimes I think I took on too much, but I don’t believe that,” Wynn said. “I believe that my purpose is to serve. And I would hate to close the door to people here just when they’re getting comfortable with me. But if I just keep doing what I’m doing, the help will come.” You can help If you are interested in donating to Walkin’ in My Shoes, contact Jwynn@walkininmyshoes.org, phone 764-0214. Jo Wynn will also be at the Kenosha Harbor Market this Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., to discuss and provide information about her program.