Earlier this year, the city of Middletown, once it was unsure whether SHALOM would operate this year, helped support a similar church-based, rotating warming center. But the center, scheduled to be open throughout the winter, closed after six days.
At the time, in an email to The Journal-News, Missy Knight, the city’s communications manager, wrote: “Due to unforeseen staffing circumstances, the warming center has been temporarily put on hold this week while the city and faith-based organizations evaluate the organizational measures going forward.”
Now it appears the responsibility of housing the homeless is falling on SHALOM, which operated without an city financial assistance for 19 years.
“So now the homeless are without shelter and are in danger of freezing to death or starting dangerous fires in an attempt to merely stay warm,” Fugate wrote.
He said what normally would take SHALOM several months to plan, it’s attempting to put together a hosting scheduled in a matter of days.
SHALOM is hoping to construct an eight-week schedule to shelter the homeless beginning on Jan. 1, 2023, according to Fugate.
He’s asking churches that can provide seven nights of shelter during January and February to contact SHALOM immediately. He said SHALOM also needs to provide chaperones, meals and transportation from the SHALOM offices at First United Methodist, 120 S. Broad St., to the host churches every evening, then return them to the church every morning.
“One of the greatest blessings we have experienced at SHALOM all of these years is how all of the different churches and groups come together and put aside their sometimes different religious beliefs, political beliefs and personal views to serve those who may have little to offer in return are in need of our services,” Fugate wrote.
Last winter, when SHALOM said it wouldn’t open due to health concerns related to COVID-19, the city of Middletown, at the last minute under then-City Manager Jim Palenick, funded a warming center through a grant that was supposed to operate for three months at a cost of $95,000.
But the warming center, due to contract disputes with the city, closed after 60 days.
Middletown Police Chief David Birk has estimated there about 200 unhoused people living in Middletown and about 50% are from outside the city. He said many of the homeless come to Middletown from surrounding Butler County communities.
Contact SHALOM at shalomhomeless@gmail.com or www.shalomhomeless.com.
About the Author
