LEE COUNTY, Fla. – While areas along the coast will hover just above freezing, places inland could drop into the 20s.
As the mercury creeps lower, the Salvation Army expects a bigger influx of homeless men, women, and children at its emergency shelter.
Volunteers spent Tuesday prepping mattresses and blankets.
The shelter housed about ten people Monday night, according to Merrilu Bennett, a Salvation Army spokesperson, but those numbers are expected to triple as the temperatures dip into the 30s.
For those who do not want to brave the cold, like Mark Roll, a warm meal and place to sleep waits inside the shelter,
“Now that it’s getting down to where it is, it’s cold, real cold,” says Roll.
It’s for the people who don’t want to stay overnight that volunteers need donations, says Bennett.
“There is a small percentage of homeless people that do not want to sleep in a shelter at night,” Bennett says. “That’s where the blankets and sweaters and gloves and everything comes in.”
The call for donations quickly touched the hearts of some, like Pat Monts. She stopped by the shelter just minutes after hearing about the need to drop off extra blankets.
“Happy to help,” says Monts. “I hope more people do the same.”
Any donations of blankets or warm clothing can be made at Sally’s Cafe, the Salvation Army shelter on the corner of Edison Avenue and Fowler Street, or any other Salvation Army location.
Source: winknews.com
