Churches open as warming centers during dangerous cold snap
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Churches in the Twin Cities are opening as overnight warming centers to help the homeless during this dangerous cold snap.
St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi transformed its youth gym into a temporary shelter to help anyone who needs a warm place to stay.
"We’ve got this big, beautiful building that’s not being used right now, so it’s just about getting people inside where they can be safe," said Kris Mason, program supervisor at St. Andrew’s Community Resource Center. "That’s why we’re here, right? We’re doing God’s work."
Mason said the church spent about $1,000 purchasing PVC pipes and plastic sheeting to create individual 10 sleeping pods in the gym.
[KSTP]
About half a dozen people have already utilized these services.
"We knew it was either life or death," said Rachel, a woman seeking shelter at the church Monday, who had been living in a tent in Washington County for the past six months. She said a police officer helped her get to St. Andrew’s as the temperatures dipped to dangerous levels over the weekend.
"I’m very thankful for this. It’s seriously saving my life. I thank God I made the decision to come here," Rachel said.
In Minneapolis, the Salvation Army transformed a chapel at Harbor Light Center into an emergency warming center as well, adding 25 beds of shelter space.
"Minnesota is one of the only states where the air will kill you in the winter, so being able to offer some extra space just becomes critically important during these really severe weather periods," said Trish Thacker, executive director at Harbor Light Center. "We do whatever we can to have the most human response we can, because these people are freezing, you know?"
The emergency shelters plan to stay open as long as the temperatures are below zero.
St. Andrew’s is also looking for volunteers to serve as hosts and help with meals. Click here for more details.