With temperatures dipping below freezing at night and The Chattanooga Community Kitchen at capacity, The Salvation Army will open its doors for overnight emergency shelter for the homeless on Friday and Saturday at 6 p.m. The ReCreate Café, The Salvation Army’s Day Center located at 800 McCallie Ave., is busy preparing to serve those in need throughout the frigid night and will also be open as a Day Shelter on Saturday from 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
The Salvation Army and The Chattanooga Community Kitchen have been communicating relaying the increase demand of services due to the colder temperatures.
The Chattanooga Community Kitchen Executive Director Jens Christensen states, “With the cold weather, the Kitchen has also been open as a warming shelter every night since Dec. 9 – essentially becoming a 24 hour, 7 day a week operation. So far this winter, over 600 men, women and children have slept on mats on the floor safe from the elements, with an average night of 120 people. With the extreme cold this week, numbers have increased, exceeding 160 on a nightly basis; spending both the day and night together has created a burden on the facility and increased tension among those seeking shelter. We are grateful for the partnership of the Salvation Army as they join us in opening to those in need on one of the coldest nights of the year, relieving tension and increasing overall capacity to make it possible for us to serve 40-50 more people together.”
“Our goal is to partner with other agencies to keep people safe and warm with these record low temperatures setting in,” said Major Algerome Newsome, Chattanooga Salvation Army area commander. “We need coffee, creamer and travel-size toiletry items for the shelter. Also, our supply of new heaters for low-income home owners is drastically low.”
Volunteers are needed to help serve in the shelter. For volunteer information, email Stacey Crisp, volunteer director, at Stacey_Crisp@uss.salvationarmy.org or call 423-505-1052.
Monetary donations are welcomed for those experiencing the high utility bills that come from having to keep temperatures warmer in their homes. Donations of coffee, toiletries, new heaters or money are being accepted at The Salvation Army, 822 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN 37403. Monetary donations can also be made online by visiting
csarmy.org or by calling 1-800-Sal-Army. For additional information, please call The Salvation Army at 423-756-1023.