The four homeless shelters in the Berkshires secured another year of federal funding this week -- a relief to advocates, but also a time to reconcile the fact that no additional money will bolster the busy shelters’ operating budgets.
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Nonetheless, the arrangement doesn’t work for the many homeless individuals and families who, Gage said, need a great deal of help that round-the-clock shelter staff provide. Shelters in the Berkshires haven’t seen a budget increase from HUD in years.

In a statement to The Eagle, U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., underscored the importance of maintaining the shelter funding that is, at the same time, insufficient.
"The grant money we’ve recently hauled in will help at a time when we’re expecting a horrendous winter and we need to bring the homeless population inside from the cold," Kerry said. "It’s a matter of life or death. We’ll take every penny we can get. But it’s not enough. Our shelters are really feeling the pressure."
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In his statement, Sen. Kerry indicated that he would gladly eliminate "waste" in the U.S. budget to free up funds for homelessness, but that congressional disagreements are making even the extension of tax cuts a battle.

"The gridlock is toxic, but especially this time of year you’d like to believe that homelessness isn’t a partisan issue," Kerry said. "I still want to believe government still has a heart for the least among us, and when you’ve got homeless veterans and homeless kids, I have to believe we can do a lot better."