CHESAPEAKE, Va. — For nearly 10 years, the Chesapeake Area Shelter Team (CAST) has partnered with churches across the city to help people in need find shelter during the winter months.
The team members typically get churches to volunteer for 10 weeks straight, but this year, they've had some trouble filling up the weeks when they need the most help.
Anne Heltzel is a church member in the Great Bridge area of Chesapeake who has worked with CAST since nearly the beginning, after getting involved with Norfolk's Emergency Shelter Team (NEST).
"During the 80s and 90s while my husband and I were in Norfolk, we had one really bad winter where multiple people living on the streets died from the cold. It was just awful and we wanted to make sure it didn't happen again," Heltzel explained. "We can't solve the problem. We can provide two hot meals and a safe place to stay."
The overnight shelters at the churches don't just provide a bed and a hot meal. Heltzel said one of the churches has a shower where people can clean up from being outside, in addition to being able to get their hair cut.
"We have a nurse who comes in and teaches the people at the shelter about health. Sometimes that would include teaching people the signs of a stroke and how to handle it," she said. "There are also children in our shelter. So, we'll have people come in to help with homework. These kids are in school ... and to just give the kids a place to play and be a child."
Now, Heltzel said CAST is still in need of church leaders to volunteer their locations to serve as overnight shelters for two weeks in December. The dates needed for assistance are December 6-20.
She said those two weeks are essential to cover as we approach more holidays during the month. She said not having an overnight shelter for 14 days could cause more problems for people and families who rely on these resources.
"It grieves us. It's like, okay, you have a place to stay now, but next week, you won't have a place to stay," Heltzel said. "For some people, they're stuck out in the cold. For others, they're trying to get away from a dangerous situation and find a safe place to stay. We just pray that other churches or organizations can help fill those empty weeks."
Heltzel said in addition to those two weeks in December, CAST is searching for churches to help fill a week in March and a week in April of this year.
If you would like to offer your location for overnight shelters, or would like to volunteer to help clean, cook meals or more at the locations, you can email Sam Howard with CAST at sam.cast@abbalist.org. You can also find more information about volunteering on CAST's website.