Homeless shelters respond to extreme cold

Despite snowfall and temperatures that hovered below zero, a few men waited outside Trinity Episcopal Church, smoking the last of their cigarettes.

Finishing quickly, they hurried inside to the warmth, where they joined a long line of other men and women experiencing homelessness waiting to be admitted for the night.

Homeless shelters in the area have recently had to make some adjustments in an effort to keep people safe from the exceedingly cold temperatures, said Rev. Forrest Gilmore, executive director at Shalom Community Center.

The National Weather Service released an advisory last night predicting temperatures reaching as low as minus 15 to minus 25 degrees for the night.

“Winter’s always rough, and this is a particularly horrible winter,” Gilmore said. “The weather’s deadly, but so far we’ve managed to protect people who are homeless from serious harm ... we haven’t yet had any instances of frostbite, and we haven’t lost anybody either.”

Deacon Connie Peppler, the site director at Trinity Episcopal Church, said the church has been extending their hours to accommodate for the bad weather.

“We’ve been bringing the guests in earlier, even though the rooms aren’t ready,” Peppler said. “We’ve been letting them linger in the spaces we have available.”

Gilmore said his work at the Shalom Center focuses on providing individuals experiencing homelessness and poverty with the resources they need to change their circumstances.

“We’re a pretty comprehensive approach to addressing people’s challenges,” Gilmore said.

Shalom Center is typically open from only 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, but there are exceptions, as was the case about two weeks ago.

“When we had that big freeze, all of the public places closed,” Gilmore said. “We expanded our hours because there was literally no where else for (the homeless) to go ... We filled the gap, which is what we tend to do when things get dangerous like that.”

During those couple of days, many of Shalom Center’s volunteers were unable to make it to the shelter because the weather was so bad, Gilmore said. Fortunately, the guests themselves stepped up to make meals and help run the shelter.

“They really went that extra mile,” Gilmore said.

Recognizing a need to keep this segment of the population safe from the cold, local leaders from a variety of faith organizations came together in 2009 to create the
Interfaith Winter Shelter, a place that has since offered a seasonal, nighttime place of refuge for the city’s homeless men and women.

“Our main job is just to get them off the streets to a safe, warm place to sleep,” Peppler said. “We’re trying to give them that protection for just the night.”

Four churches, including Trinity, are host to the shelter for one or two nights per week on a rotating basis, according to its website.

The shelter operates under a low-barrier model, meaning guests may be admitted regardless of whether they are under the influence of alcohol or an illegal substance, so long as they are respectful, according to its website.

“All of the guests are homeless for whatever reason,” Peppler said. “Some of it is that they cannot afford to pay rent. Some work full time. Some get up at 5 o’clock in the morning and walk to the other side of town to get to work. It’s a broad spectrum.”

“No one wants to be homeless, but some of them cannot help it,” said Reva Duke, a volunteer at Trinity. “It’s a cycle.”

Guests at Trinity are let inside at 9 p.m., at which time they register, check their belongings at the desk and are usually given something hot to eat, Peppler said.

“The cold weather has made it so that I have been letting them in earlier than usual,” Peppler said.

Oftentimes, Peppler said, many of the guests at Trinity seem eager to help out as well.

“It seems like there’s almost a community,” said senior Victoria Laskey, a volunteer at Trinity.

“It’s usually the same people every week,” Peppler said. “We get to know them by their first names, generally.”

The vast majority of the people who work at Trinity are volunteers from all across the community, Peppler said, including students, retired people and members of different organizations.

Shalom Center relies heavily on its volunteers as well, Gilmore said.

“We base our need on what’s happening in the community,” Gilmore said. “We’ll be there for people and work hard to make sure people are safe.”