County rolls out warming shelters for homeless

WAYNESBURG – The wind chill factor was dipping below zero Tuesday afternoon when “Warm Nights 20 and Below” got its first call.
A woman, on her way to Morgantown, W.Va., was stranded in Waynesburg and in need of a place to stay. Lucky for her and others who are in need of shelter when the temperature drops, there is a brand new program in Greene County waiting to help them.
“We were so excited,” United Way of Greene County Director Barb Wise said the next day, sitting tired but happy at her desk in the organization’s High Street office. “Everything went the way we planned. We were ready.”
Ready meant that when the email came to Wise from the SPHS Crisis hotline, the volunteers on call sprang into action. Ashley Beaman opened the doors of Greene Community Church on High Street Waynesburg and helped Wise and fellow volunteer, Mark Carlson, set up a cot and lay out blankets, snacks and a comfort kit of toiletries. They were there to welcome the first guest and explain the rules of the house. When quiet time came at 11 p.m., Wise and Carlson settled in to spend the night as volunteer chaperones.
Warm Nights is a natural extension of the work Wise took on in 2012 when she and other volunteers like Carlson, a FEMA and Red Cross volunteer, helped the county’s emergency management and the Red Cross set up eight disaster shelters across the county. But there was gap between natural disasters and personal crisis that was waiting to be filled. By last July, plans were afoot in the county’s human services sector and the community at large to fill that void.
“We didn’t have a shelter for the homeless, we depended on other counties and Morgantown,” Wise said.
Centre County had a Cold Center program, so Wise and others went on a field trip to learn how it was done.
“Centre County has 10 churches and 100 volunteers. We took their training model and tweaked it,” county Housing and Family Resources director Amy Switalski said.
Wise said the group currently has four sites and 17 volunteers for the winter season.
“We’re taking baby steps,” Wise said. “This year is a trial run and we’re working to get the word out to those who need shelter that Warm Nights is a safe place to be.”
Warm Nights fliers are hanging at places where the homeless might linger, including gas stations, restaurants, post offices and retail businesses, Wise said. The homeless population of Greene County and elsewhere includes veterans unable to be in closed spaces, battered women afraid to go home, people with jobs but unable to afford rent, children attending school but sleeping in cars. Many are unaware of the programs available to help them find affordable housing or address the personal issues that lead to their homelessness.
For those who need shelter now, dialing 211, the emergency number for community services puts them in contact with SPHS CRISIS hotline. Volunteer operators take the calls, assess needs and email this information to Wise. Then the volunteers on call open the site and get ready for guests to arrive.
Those calling before 4 p.m. are put on the list of guests who will be staying at the shelter that is scheduled to be open. Currently, sites in operation are West Sides, WWJD Christian Center and Greene Community Church. Each site is on call for two-week stints, as are the volunteers who sign up to keep the shelter open for the night. Calls made to 211 after 4 p.m. are referred to the Waynesburg Borough Police Department.
“We will evaluate them on a case by case basis and make sure they are accommodated,” Waynesburg police Officer Jay Hanley said.
Warm Nights 20 and Below accepts registered guests until 10 p.m. then doors are locked with directions to the borough police station posted there.
Service dogs are permitted to stay at the shelter and arrangements will be made through the Humane Society to give shelter to other pets, Wise said.
When guests leave at 7 a.m., they take with them all their possessions including the blankets and the comfort kits they were given. They also leave with a contact sheet of Greene County services available and a cheery invitation to bring their blankets and come back again when the temperature falls.