Collaboration in the midst of Crisis. We are partnering with community and city leaders to open a warming shelter in advance of the extreme weather this week.
The City of Springfield joins a collaborative community response, organized by the Nehemiah Foundation, to provide shelter amid extreme cold weather that is forecast for the area this week. The shelter will open at 8 p.m. Jan. 5 and is expected remain open through Saturday afternoon.
The shelter will be hosted by East High Street Church of the Nazarene, 1625 E. High St. The shelter entrance is at the corner of High Street and Ludlow Avenue. Organizers will take COVID-respecting precautions shelter operations.
“Our church is a community building, it’s here for the community.” Said Marty Dennis, Pastor at East High Street Church of the Nazarene.
This community collaborative response is coordinated among the Nehemiah Foundation, East High Street Church of the Nazarene, Interfaith Hospitality Network, City of Springfield, Clark County Government, Clark County Combined Health District, United Way of Clark Champaign and Madison Counties, and many other local support networks.
“The Nehemiah Foundation formed and solidified The Faith-Community Crisis Response Team Initiative in 2021 as one of four initiative ‘pathways,’” said Amy Wilman, Executive Director at the Nehemiah Foundation. “Our mission is to cultivate unity among the faith community and provide a network and platform for generosity, community transformation, and hope. We are honored to be a part of this particular emergency warming shelter effort, a truly collaborative effort among the faith-community as well as across the civic, government, and social service sectors. With glistening hope, we encourage everyone in our community to pursue, protect, and preserve unity by responding in times of crisis with warmth and wisdom.”
The United Way of Clark Champaign and Madison County will host the Volunteers United Platform for individuals and organizations to sign up to volunteer at this extreme cold shelter, or other community collaborative response shelters that may need to open this winter.
