Kenneth Husbands doesn’t want to talk about what brought him here.

But whatever crisis triggered his homelessness seems far from the minds of his three kids as they move into temporary digs at Wasatch Presbyterian.

"Smells good, I’m hungry," 10-year-old Kadeam says on a tour of the kitchen where volunteers prepare pasta and chili. The trio then spots the gymnasium and, with a "woohoo," race off.

The congregation is among 10 in the Salt Lake Valley that have opened their doors to families in need in partnership with Family Promise of Salt Lake, the local arm of a national nonprofit. The program fills a niche, providing first-time homeless families food and amenities not available at shelters: A gym, a library and brightly decorated private rooms.

Multi-generational and nontraditional families, such as young moms with boyfriends who normally would be split up at a shelter, are welcome. Substance abuse is forbidden and enforced with drug and alcohol testing.

"We want this to be a safe, quiet, more intimate experience for the kids," said Tony Milner, interim director of Family Promise of Salt Lake. "Their lives have been turned upside down and we want them to be as comfortable as possible."

But like all housing programs, Family Promise is feeling the brunt of the economy downturn.

This year, an estimated 13,378 school children were homeless — up 67 percent from 2008, according to the state’s official count.

Although foreclosures are slowing, Milner said, "the waiting list is still growing. It used to be we’d get four or five calls a day. Now it’s more like 10 or 15."

With churches picking up fixed costs — some like Wasatch Presbyterian have even remodeled with an eye toward taking in more families — the 16-year-old program is getting good results.

"Last year we served 40 families and 125 individuals," Milner said. "Other affiliates our size serve half that."

The goal is to get families stable and permanently housed in a month. Nationally, the average length-of-stay for families is 65 days. In Utah, it’s 35 days.

Milner credits the interdenominational camaraderie of volunteers and, ironically, Utah’s landlord-friendly laws.

"It makes it easier to find a place to rent," he said. "In places like Boston where there are lots of laws protecting renters, it’s harder to evict someone, so landlords are more scrupulous about credit and background checks."

Not all denominations participate. Some — such as the LDS Church, which bans overnight activities — contribute cash and personnel.

There is no proselytizing in the program; just a daily blessing at dinner.