It's Cold Outside (Story)

It was frightening when I came to work last week. 

We open the doors of Interfaith Ministries at 8 am to those who have waited through the night for a hot cup of coffee and a snack bag.

There, on the landing, in front of our door, was a sleeping bag- filled with someone with no other option for shelter.  The air was frigid and I could see my breath as I hollered to the sleeping form, "Good Morning!"  There was no response.  I prayed this person was just sound asleep.  I stared at the sleeping form, looking for movement as I reached over the bundled person to swipe my key card.  I saw what I thought was the rising of a chest and thought, good, they are breathing.  Then a small canine head popped out of the top of the bag and back inside.  As I opened the door, the form stirred.  It was a lady and her dog. 

Sarah had no where else to sleep so she and her small dog curled up inside her sleeping bag and lay on the front porch of interfaith Ministries to spend the night.

We have no homeless shelter in Anniston.  With the closing of The Salvation Army shelter this past year one of the only places left for folks without options is the Servants of Jesus shelter, from which Sarah has been evicted.  Sarah has been to Interfaith Ministries in the past for other services but now she is looking to make our porch her home for the night.

Some mornings we come in to work early and find people sleeping in the shrubs in front of our ministry. 

Living rough like this is unsafe, to say the least.  The homeless are preyed upon in the night.  Some folks are known to wander the streets all night then come to places like Interfaith Ministries and sleep in the conference room during the day.  With the colder weather coming upon us, sleeping outdoors anywhere is unsafe.  

Recently, the Carver center was opened as a warming center the night temperatures dropped below 20 degrees.  The next night Sarah was back looking for a safe place to sleep.  She begged the churches for a spot out of the weather and ended up sleeping in the post office box section of the Anniston post office.  There she, and her pup, were warmer than in the open but we all know this isn't really a solution.

A task force consisting of different agencies in our community has been working diligently toward finding a solution to the lack of shelter for our community's homeless population.   With cooperation from the different agencies, partnership with the city of Anniston and the prayers and support of our community- we hope to soon have a shelter that will not only house these neighbors during the night, but offer them the opportunity to take steps on the long road to self-sufficiency.  

In the mean time- it's going to be cold again and the porch is no place to sleep.

Please encourage those who are able to assist us in being part of the solution in our community.

If you feel so called, please consider donating or volunteering at a local warm shelter.