St. Paul Lutheran Church to provide shelter to women

If it all works out, St. Paul Lutheran Church will transform into a 12-bed women’s shelter practically overnight at the end of this month. The church in downtown Vancouver hosts 24 men as part of the annual Winter Hospitality Overflow program, which wraps up the morning of March 31.

That evening, as women begin to fill the space, the WHO will become WHAT — that is, Women’s Housing and Transition. It’s been a whirlwind process making the new shelter program a reality since the idea was floated at the end of February.

“(St. Paul was) extremely receptive. It’s just been a matter of ironing out the details,” said Amy Reynolds, deputy director of Share. “It’s really amazing how things have come together.”

Building on failure

Turning a church into a temporary, overnight women’s shelter came on the heels of a failed idea for increasing shelter space for homeless people.

The Council for the Homeless and Bill Ritchie, founding pastor of Crossroads Community Church, had come up with a plan to build a village of tiny houses on church property. Safe Harbor Church of the Nazarene had initially agreed to host people in a field behind the church, but the church backed out after threat of a lawsuit. Neighbors were concerned about the idea, Reynolds said.

The tiny village is “not a dead idea,” she said. “It’s just not something that’s going to happen as quickly as we need a solution for women, especially (ones) who are experiencing homelessness.”

Community Services Northwest was going to fund the tiny village and wanted something accomplished before the temporary winter shelters closed. Forty-eight private donors also gave a total of $38,967 to the Council for the Homeless for the tiny village.

Rather than bank on securing a piece of land for a village, those involved came up with another option and decided to approach a church already dedicated to housing the homeless.

Long tradition of aid

For 13 years, St. Paul Lutheran Church at 1309 Franklin St. has hosted homeless men in a former Sunday school building from November through March. For decades, the church also housed FISH of Vancouver until the food bank moved to its own facility last year.

“Because we’ve been involved in the WHO for so long, it wasn’t completely out of character to think we’re in the right place at the right time. It’s kind of a win-win for both,” said Geri Hiller, a part-time staffer at St. Paul. “We have space that would be empty for summer, except for little uses, but this is going to put it to use all summer for a good purpose.”

The women’s shelter will run from March 31 through Halloween. It would operate similar to the Winter Hospitality Overflow shelters, in that people come could in the evening, stay overnight, but would have to be out during the day. A child care center runs out of the building, Hiller said.

‘Ideally located’

Four rooms at the church will sleep three women each. There’s a shower and laundry room that they could use, totes for storing belongings, and a hospitality room for hanging out. They won’t be able to cook, though, because there’s no commercial kitchen. Instead, clients will get snacks and coffee, and be sent to nearby Share House for meals.

“This is really ideally located,” Reynolds said. “Share House is just down the way. … Our day center is also located down here, so this has made it more convenient for the women who are going to be here to access other services.”

Hiller said the church plans to have a small clothing closet for the women, like the church does for men in the winter. The church already had one mattress and box spring set donated and aims to collect 11 more sets, so that the women can sleep on beds rather than mats. If someone transitions into housing, they can take the bed with them.

“It’s exciting to know what the possibilities are, and that we can be a part of it,” Hiller said. “We see the people on the street. So, to be able to provide something that will be a benefit for them is a good thing. And, I think that’s what we’re called to do.”

Mick Johnson, president of the church’s council, described the effort as a “cooperative ministry.”

“If it works out well, these women will transition into housing and won’t be here all summer,” he said.

Donor support

Money for the tiny village is being held in a restricted fund, and all of the donors were contacted to let them know the concept did not come to fruition. Donors were invited to either receive a full refund or to send their gift to the Housing Relief Fund, which offers needy families one-time assistance by covering costs such as rental application fees, security deposits and moving expenses.

By Thursday, 10 donors had responded, and all of them redirected their gifts to the Housing Relief Fund, said Charlene Welch, development and community relations manager at the Council for the Homeless.

Reynolds estimates the shelter will cost about $110,000 to operate for seven months, which will be paid for by Clark County Community Services. That figure includes building materials for temporary dividing walls that would give the women some privacy. Hiller’s son, who’s in construction, agreed to donate his labor to build them. He’s been sprucing up the building with help from his family. Also included in the cost is upgrading the fire alarm system, the $2,300 Share will pay monthly to the church for rent and utilities, and part-time staff members.

Having paid staff makes it more expensive but allows the program to reach people with mental health and substance abuse issues who may not otherwise be able to get into shelter, Reynolds said. For instance, people can stay there even if they’re intoxicated when they arrive. Clients at the primarily volunteer-run winter overflow shelters have to take a Breathalyzer test to stay overnight.

The shelter will also allow pets — a first for Share.

“We’re allowing pets and haven’t currently restricted the definition of what that would be. We’re expecting dogs,” Reynolds said, adding that Share is in need of kennels and crates.

New shelter option

WHAT addresses the lack of available shelter space, especially for women. Share has two rooms for single women, one at each of its family shelters; four women sleep in each room. During the winter, single women and children stay at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in the Orchards area. Staff at St. Andrew were told about the upcoming shelter option. When homeless women call the Housing Hotline, they’ll have another option.

Exact numbers on unsheltered women are hard to come by. The Council for the Homeless found that in May last year, 30 women were turned away due to lack of shelter space. In 2015, during a one-day count of homeless people, 206 people in Clark County were considered unsheltered. Reynolds said that population increased 12 percent this year.

“I think the public has certainly noticed an increase in the number of people who are visibly experiencing homelessness in our community,” she said.

Given that increase, she believes WHAT will fill up right away.

“Shelter certainly isn’t a long-term answer to end anybody’s homelessness. It’s just a temporary measure to help somebody be safe,” Reynolds said. “It will be housing that ends homelessness in our community.”