Today, we are in conversation with Ariana Berksteiner, executive director of Emmaus House, which daily serves between 100 and 300 homeless people in downtown Savannah.
When she moved to Savannah more than a decade ago, Berksteiner helped new restaurants get up and running. Today, she helps the city’s homeless get through each day by serving a meal, offering a shower and a place to do laundry and arranging for medical assistance.
Berksteiner sees homelessness in many forms. Before the Pandemic, the city’s homeless was predominantly Male and African-American. Today, there are men, women, Black, White, Hispanic, young, old. Unfortunately, she says, every group is represented.