Warm up at the Salvation Army

The dangerously cold conditions are an especially serious problem if you are homeless.

The Salvation Army is trying to house everyone who doesn’t have a place to go. The army has 14 men’s beds, six women’s and two family rooms. At the moment the shelter only has a few more spaces left, but Shelter Manager, Karen Walker, said they will find a place for anyone who needs shelter.

“Instead of staying out in the cold please come see us, give us a call, whatever. If we can’t keep you here we’ll locate someplace that you can go, set up cots, whatever we have to do,” Walker said. “It’s awfully dangerous outside with this cold, and we don’t want anybody staying out in the cold.”

Being out in the cold for extended periods of time can be very dangerous. And Walker begs people stuck in it to get to a shelter.

“At these temperatures, especially at night you may only have minutes before you’re dealing with a life threatening situation, so please you know if it is at night time get a hold of the police station or the sheriff’s station,” Walker said. “They’ll give us a call, they’ll bring you in. Even if we have to set up a cot for overnight we’ll do that.”

During the day, the Salvation Army serves as a warming station. Walker said if you need somewhere to warm up the Army will welcome you in, give you a warm meal, hot beverage and just give you a place to shake the outside chill.