NeighborImpact Announces Extension of Bend Warming Shelter
Bend, OR- NeighborImpact is pleased to announce a planned extension of the closure of the Bend Winter Warming Shelter.
Preliminary agreement has been reached between NeighborImpact and Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson and county administrators to extend the winter shelter on a day by day basis. Any agreement is subject to final approval of the Deschutes County board of Commissioners. Funding for the extension will be provided through Oregon Housing and Community Services and other partners.
The winter warming shelter had been scheduled to close on Monday, March 16, but concerns about managing the spread of the new coronavirus and extremely cold weather this week prompted a cooperative scramble to find a way to extend the closure date. The shelter will be supplemented with motel vouchering and distribution of tents, sleeping bags, tarps and propane heaters.
The Bend Winter Warming shelter was originally conceived and organized by the Homeless Leadership Coalition, a group of advocates for intervening in and preventing homelessness in Central Oregon. NeighborImpact agreed to provide the operational oversight of the facility when it opened in December. Since opening, 240 unique individuals have accessed the shelter. The January 2019 Point in Time count of homeless individuals in living in Central Oregon found 880 homeless people living in the region. Numbers for 2020 have not yet been released.
The Bend warming shelter is part of a regional tri-county network of shelters coordinated through the Homeless Leadership Coalition’s winter shelter committee. Local homeless advocates continue to coordinate response to needs of the homeless in this public health emergency.
About NeighborImpact: Since 1985, NeighborImpact has been a leader in developing solutions and bringing resources to Crook, Jefferson, Deschutes County and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. The agency offers a diversity of services meeting basic human needs for food and shelter, while enriching people’s lives by providing access to increased education, skills, and hope for the future. NeighborImpact is a private nonprofit organization that receives federal, state and local grants, foundation grants and donations from individuals and businesses in our community. To learn more about NeighborImpact please visit www.neighborimpact.org.
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