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Cold weather shelters draw a big crowd
By SUZETTE PORTER
Article published on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2007 |
PINELLAS COUNTY – When the National Weather Service issued a freeze warning for Tampa Bay on Monday, volunteers responsible for the county's six cold weather shelters began to mobilize.
Michael Armidei, of Belleair, state chair of the Homeless Coalition and coordinator for the county’s cold weather shelter program, said a full crowd of about 450 people was expected on Monday night. He said about 150 had spent the night in the shelters on Sunday.
Armidei said cold weather shelters were opened primarily to accommodate the homeless population, but volunteers don’t deny anyone who needs a warm place to stay as long as room is available.
The shelters are opened at 6 p.m. on nights when cold weather is forecast. Guests are fed a warm meal that night and a warm breakfast before the shelter closes at 6 the next morning.
Tuesday's freeze warning remained in effect until 9 a.m., three hours after the shelters closed their doors. The coldest part of any day is often the hours right around sunrise.
"The coldest time is often between 6 and 7 a.m.," Armidei agreed, when asked why the shelter would close when the freeze warning was still in effect.
“But, they’ve spent the night in a heated facility,” he said. “The next morning they experience the same conditions as anyone would on their way to work.”
He said many of those who spend the night in shelters have to get up and have their breakfast in time to get to a job.
“It’s hard to get everyone up and moving and fed and out the door for those who work,” he said.
He said shelters are there to provide people a place to stay warm through the night, which could be a life saving measure for the sick and elderly.
Armidei said the shelters could use support from the community with donations of blankets, cold weather jackets, socks, underwear and food.
“The community has always stepped up to the plate and helped us,” he said.
Donations can be dropped off at any of the six shelter locations between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. or anytime the shelters are open at night.
Shelter locations are:
First United Methodist Church of Tarpon Springs
501 E. Tarpon Ave., Tarpon Springs. Call 727-937-3271
Northwest Presbyterian Church
6330 54th Ave. N., St. Petersburg. Call 727-544-4551
Peace Memorial Presbyterian Church
110 S. Ft. Harrison Ave., Clearwater. Call 727-446-3001
Salvation Army of St. Petersburg
1400 Fourth St. S., St. Petersburg. Call 727-821-9123
Solid Rock Christian Recovery Center
4224 28th St. N., St. Petersburg. Call 727-521-6306
The Turning Point
1801 Fifth Ave. N., St. Petersburg. Call 727-823-7811
Armidei said the two largest shelters were Peace Memorial Presbyterian Church, which has a capacity for 150 people, and Northwest Presbyterian Church, which can accommodate 80.
He said more shelters were needed, especially as a backup, as the homeless population continued to grow. He said although the number of shelters had not grown in past years, existing shelters had grown to offer more spaces.
The shelter program is an all-volunteer effort that has operated for the past 20 years.
“It is government, community and faith-based,” Armidei said. “It’s a refreshing volunteer-run operation.”
Armidei has been involved in the program for the past five years and is responsible to coordinate the operations of all shelters in the county.
“I’ll physically be in the shelters all night long,” he said.
The NWS in Ruskin issued on Monday morning a freeze warning for portions of Pinellas County, including the cities of Clearwater and St. Petersburg. The warning was in effect Tuesday from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m.
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Article published on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2007
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