About RefugeLink
Refuge Calvary Chapel Huntington Beach was formed as a fellowship of believers in the Lordship of
Jesus Christ. Our supreme desire is to know Christ and be conformed into his image by the power of the
Holy Spirit. We have been assisting the needy for many years through several ministries which focus on
the homeless and low income residents of Orange County, providing them with hot meals, pantry goods,
clothing, hygiene products, and informational services. We believe that loving community outreach is the
truest expression of what Jesus has asked us to do when we decide to live our lives for him. We are each
given gifts which we can use to comfort those around us and to be living examples of Christ.
But we’re not the only ones in the neighborhood who open our doors to the needy. Many cities offer an
abundance of services to their homeless and low income residents through numerous non-profit and
governmental entities. Unfortunately, connecting service providers with those in need has not been
perfected. Outreach providers and online database services have worked hard to maintain up-to-date lists
of shelters, kitchens, food panties, clothing distributors, etc., but the information is not real-time,
and therefore may not be accurate. A shelter might be on the list as “open” from October through March
but at any given time the facility may be full. A shower facility might be listed as “open every
Thursday”, but could be closed next Thursday because it’s a holiday. Even if someone with a need does
eventually get an answer, they still need directions to the service provider from their current
location. In the online world there should be an easy way to connect service providers with service
seekers using real-time information and directions.
Our solution is RefugeLink. RefugeLink.com is a real-time GPS-based essential services locator app which can be used by the needy or by helpful citizens as well as service providers to connect those in need with the services they are seeking. Up until recently, this concept would have been impractical since homeless individuals were unlikely to carry smart phones. But because of the California Lifeline program, low income people can qualify for free telephones and all of them are now smart phones. Our plan is to create an online database of providers and their services. A user will be able to select categories such as Food, Shelter, Clothing, Hygiene, Medical, and Substance Abuse and the app will display a list of providers sorted by distance from the user based on his GPS location. The list will also indicate whether the provider services are available that day and at what time. The user can then drill-down to view detail information on each provider listed. Details would include a description of the provider, address, phone number, map with directions and bus routes, further information on the services provided by the facility, and operating hours for each service provided.
What makes RefugeLink particularly unique among online essential service databases is that it includes a mechanism for providers to maintain their own information. We work with each provider to set up their account so that they can change their basic information as needed. Each provider has a “Provider App” which will allow them to override the status of each service on-the-fly in a matter of seconds.
Technology has always been about improving lives. It has changed the way we communicate, educate, work, shop, and gather information. With smart phones becoming ubiquitous in the homeless community, we believe that this technology can empower and improve the lives of those who otherwise have few resources.
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."