DIMH is an amazing organization in downtown Dover that helps people out of homelessness to become successful and contributing members of the community.  In fifteen years we’ve sheltered more than 3,750 men.  Most of them do not return.  Well over 60% secure employment before they leave the shelter.  DIMH also operates ongoing affordable housing for men so that they have a place to live when they’re ready to move from the shelter.  So most men who come through the shelter are working and living productive and purposeful lives in our community. 

DIMH operates on a very small staff and has depended on the generosity of its volunteers and donors to continue operating.  We’re proud to say that we’ve provided more than 12,000 plates of dinner a year, on a food budget of zero, and that is because people of the community come to provide dinner every day of the year. 

Other things we need are always additional funding.  We're especially looking for people who are willing to make an ongoing pledge to us to who help us sustain our work, $5 or $10 a month can make a huge difference when put together with contributions from a wide number of people in the community so we ask you to think about what you can contribute either at a one time or continuing basis.  All of that goes to program and not for administration because we have so many gaps in what we provide that grants don’t cover, like bus tickets and things of that nature.

 

Money goes for the operation of our daytime resource center, where people who are not yet sheltered come to get assistance, very basic assistance from a team of volunteers.  We try to have coffee and simple snacks for them.  We also need cleaning and bathroom supplies.  We have shower and laundry facilities for them so we need laundry detergent pods and stuff like towels and travel like supplies for the showers.  We also need support to keep the resource center open because we have no grant funding to pay the electric bill or to make sure that we have a phone for people to come in to use and office supplies are also very expensive and we don’t have any grant funds that cover those.  

What we do makes a difference.  We estimate at least 500 unsheltered homeless people in the greater Dover area, and we can currently only shelter 34 men a night.  Every extra dollar can make huge difference to do more for our community.  

Help us to launch our new facility in the building pictured, which we have just purchased!

Dover Interfaith Mission for Housing (DIMH) was founded in 2008 and is a homeless shelter for men in the Central Delaware community. 

We are a volunteer organization made up of over 1000 volunteers serving 12,000 meals per year with no cost. The idea is to get men and women back into the working community and back on their feet. We are a non sectarian organization but a faith community group home. We serve 36 men, year round, financed by grants and donations and have two paid staff members and a few active volunteer board members. The Dover Interfaith Mission for Housing continues to operate our shelter and transition homes for homeless men, serving 180 men since the first of the year and 1000 or more since program inception. Over 700 of them have obtained permanent employment in our community and 100 men earning just minimum wage put $1.5 million back into our local economy.

As we grow and expand our services to help those in need, we plan to open our new Women and Children's Shelter in early 2025. This new shelter will provide women and children in the Dover community with housing options, essential services, and resources to help build a pathway of hope in their lives. This Giving Tuesday, your contribution to our organization will go straight towards our new Women and Children's Shelter and we greatly appreciate any and all help. Every donation counts.