Winter shelters are opening- volunteer and donate now!
As the temperatures drop outside, winter homeless shelters are opening around the city to make sure that people experiencing homelessness are safe, warm and dry and they need community members to get involved to support the people who turn to them. Here are the current shelters in NW and Downtown Portland and ways that you can support them:
5th Avenue Center- 421 SW 5th Ave
The 5th Avenue Shelter is a temporary, low-barrier overnight shelter for up to 75 men with priority for people 55 and older, those with disabilities, and Veterans. The shelter was opened on November 20th and will remain open throughout the winter. Transition Projects hosts volunteer training sessions which are required to serve at this shelter. View upcoming training sessions at http://www.tprojects.org/winter/
Mitzvah House- 1972 NW Flanders St
The Mitzvah House is an emergency shelter operated by Portland Homeless Family Solutions in Beth Israel, a synagogue in NW Portland. This shelter will be open to families during the evening. The Mitzvah House is looking for volunteers and donations. You can sign up for a volunteer training session on Beth Israel’s website: http://www.bethisrael-pdx.org/community/mitzvah-house
Salvation Army Female Emergency Shelter (SAFES)- 30 SW 2nd Ave
SAFES is a shelter for women at least 18 years old. Call the shelter to discuss items needed for donations and volunteer opportunities at 503-227-0810.You can make cash donations to the Salvation Army here: https://give.salvationarmyusa.org/site/SPageServer?pagename=national_donation_form
Bud Clark Commons- 665 NW Hoyt St
Transition Projects is operating this severe weather shelter which can hold up to 125 people.Transition Projects is providing special 90-minute training sessions for adults 18 and older that provide an overview of what severe weather shelters are; a brief run-through on what to expect, roles, and policies; and some basic de-escalation skills. Sign up to attend a training: http://www.tprojects.org/winter/
Donate:
You can donate money or supplies to any of the above shelters. The most commonly requested items include warm clothes, blankets, socks and sleeping bags. This winter gear is vital to make sure that people outside are ready for the cold. To make it easy, JOIN has created an Amazon wishlist of their most needed items you can view here: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/LEO6FL87NNHE. Send items to their address at 1435 NE 81st Avenue, Suite 100, Portland, OR, 97213.
Other ways to help
During cold weather, if you meet an at risk person, you can call Central City Concern’s CHIERS van (normally available for people displaying public inebriation) to take them to a warming shelter. CHIERS is available from 1:45 to 11:45 pm, seven days a week. Call CHIERS at 503.238.8132. To locate shelter and transportation to shelter, please call 211.