Salvation Army Emergency Shelter

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – Winter weather can be especially hard on those who have no place to go.

The Salvation Army does offer an emergency shelter to help keep people off the street. Shelter Director Karen Walker said there are many reasons people need to stay at the shelter, one of them being bad weather.

“A lot of times buses are canceled or what have you so an individual may just need an overnight stay until that bus comes through so there’s a lot of different reasons for it. But we potentially could see an increase,” said Walker.

Walker said their shelter is open to all Muskingum, Perry, and Morgan County residents and can offer one night stays for anyone not from those counties. She said people do need an ID to enter the shelter and that they do background and warrant checks on anyone who enters. Walker said they work hard to keep their shelter a safe and clean place to be.

“Sometimes there’s a stigma that I don’t want to enter a shelter because they’re…whatever…Our shelter is very safe, it’s very clean, and we take a lot of pride in it and we have wonderful individuals who come through,” said Walker.

Walker encourages anyone who may need to come to the shelter to call at 740-452-8350 before coming to ensure there is room and they have everything they need to enter the shelter. She said they are also able to provide bedding and blankets to those who need them but may not want to enter the shelter.