Lawton realtor to keep homeless shelter open

A local Lawton realtor is taking it upon herself to keep the C. Carter Crane Shelter for the Homeless open and running.

Brenda Spencer-Ragland is paying out of pocket to keep the shelter running after it was set to close on July 15 with the dissolvement of the Great Plains Improvement Foundation.

Since 1985 the C. Carter Crane Shelter for the Homeless has provided essential services and lodging for individuals and families who have no place to go. On July 15, the Great Plains Improvement Foundation officially closed. It’s going to take a few weeks for the foundation to officially dissolve, but services the foundation offered like the C. Carter Crane center were going to shut down on Monday.

The shelter has a max capacity of 28 residents and people are moving in and out all the time. Spencer-Ragland is aware of the homeless issue around Lawton, and that’s why she is so invested in keeping the shelter open and called losing the shelter, “detrimental.”

“Community plays a role,” said Spencer-Ragland. “If you don’t want to see the homeless community growing, support local shelters.”

New Year’s Eve, Spencer-Ragland received a call from a mother who had six kids and needed somewhere to go. At the time, the C. Carter Crane Shelter for the Homeless was closed for repairs and that’s when she realized how badly Lawton needed this shelter.

“If not us,” said Spencer-Ragland, “than who?”

Funding for the shelter will come from Spencer-Ragland herself. She is retired but also works as a realtor, where she says she takes what she makes in commission and gives it back to the community in some way. In this case, she will be using that commission to keep the shelter open.

Spencer-Ragland will lease the building for the first year to make things easier during the transition. After that, the building will be in her name. She has already received the title to the Great Plains Improvement Foundation pickup truck that will continue to be used by the shelter.

Great Plains Improvement Foundation first vice chair Rodney Youngblood knew that Spencer-Ragland taking the shelter over was going to be a success by way of funding it herself.

Any last funding that the Great Plains Improvement Foundation receives or has left over will go to Embrace Hope, according to Youngblood. Embrace Hope is a community outreach event that connects people in need with services and programs to support them. Spencer-Ragland works with this organization and the money donated also will be used to support the shelter.

Spencer-Ragland plans to create a curriculum for residents who stay at the shelter. She wants to have guests come by every weekend if possible and give lessons on cooking, budgeting, how to file for benefits, what jobs to look for, housing, and anything else she thinks would be useful to residents. A curriculum would ensure that residents can retain information once their time at the shelter is done, she said.

“One unfortunate incident and anyone can be homeless,” said Spencer-Ragland. “I can’t imagine this shelter not being here. I prayed about it.”

The shelter is looking for donations for food, toiletries and cleaning supplies. They also will be looking for volunteers for a workday they are planning to make improvements to the building itself, according to Spencer-Ragland. The date for that hasn’t been finalized yet.