As temperatures drop, more of the homeless population finds shelter at Weigand Day Center

Intermountain Catholic

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At the Weigand Day Center, the homeless can shower, use the phone, use computers to find housing and jobs, get a haircut, have their clothes washed and stored, receive mail, receive medical treatment or attend court. IC photo/Christine Young

SALT LAKE CITY — An increased number of homeless people have been seeking shelter at Catholic Community Services’ Weigand Day Center, and with the bitterly cold temperatures in Utah the past few weeks, the center is now open on Saturday and Sunday.

The Weigand Center will remain open on the weekends through April.

"The center has been extremely busy since November," said Dennis Kelsch, CCS Emergency Services director. "It is usually closed an hour and a half while lunch is served in the [Saint Vincent de Paul] dining hall, but it has been left open with the extreme cold weather so the people don’t have to be outside at all."

On the weekends, the Weigand Homeless Resource Center is a place for the homeless to get out of the weather and use the restroom. A hot meal is provided at noon and a soup and a sandwich supper is provided in the evening in the dining hall.

"There have been so many more people come in the center with the cold weather, we are even allowing those who have been drinking to come in to keep them off the streets," said Virginia Lopez, CCS client advocate. "Usually we don’t let them in, but as long as they behave, we’d rather have them safe and not freeze to death. We also are trying to watch for frostbite because a lot of the people who come here are diabetic and can’t feel their feet because of neuropathy."

Alcohol is a leading cause of hypothermia "because it reduces a person’s body temperature even though a person might feel warm," said Jason Asay, Salt Lake Fire Department public information officer, who recently has seen an increase in calls to respond to people living out in the extreme cold weather.

"We receive calls to respond to people who are either thought to be dead or are experiencing hypothermia," Asay said. "If they are dead, we call in the medical examiner and the police; if they are suffering from hypothermia, we perform treatment and transport them to the hospital. We try to control their shivering by getting them in a warm environment or wrapping them in blankets to raise their body temperature. One key cause to hypothermia is dehydration, so emergency medical technicians or paramedics give them fluids to try to raise the core temperature."

To help keep the homeless from sleeping outside in the cold, the Saint Vincent dining hall is also used as an overflow shelter by The Road Home. During the weekdays the homeless can go to the Weigand Center and use the showers, computers to find housing and jobs, use the phone, get a haircut, get their clothes washed and stored on a two-week basis and receive mail. They also can receive medical treatment once a week or attend court twice a month.

Joe, a homeless man who sleeps in the overflow shelter, is happy to have the Weigand Center to stay warm during the day, but wishes the television wasn’t so old so he could see it better, he said. "I usually camp out, but it’s been too cold."

Michael and Tyler also sleep in the overflow shelter and said they appreciate the volunteers who bring coffee and donuts in the morning.

To help the Weigand Center clients, "we collect clothes and are always in need of adult clothing for men and women, especially coats, hats, gloves and socks," said Kelsch. "The donations go into our clothing room, which is open twice a week, but because of the cold, we have opened it extra days and a half hour early. Every morning the homeless are lined up when it opens. They are allowed one set of clothing such as a jacket, but if they come back a few days later, they can get another set."

"I got some socks from the clothing room," said Joe. "My socks get wet from wearing them all day and there isn’t any place to dry them in the shelters."

The clients are aware of the crowding in the facilities and some of them are willing to lend a hand, said Kelsch. For example, Michael and Tyler have offered to move tables and carry food boxes into the kitchen for the volunteers serving meals.

"I try to help when I can because they volunteer their time to serve us," said Tyler.

"Some of us are nice like that and we try to set an example for the others," added Michael, who has been trying without success to find a job.

"I feel judged because I’m homeless. People say ‘Get a job,’ but nobody will hire me because I’m homeless even though I’m qualified … to flip burgers or do construction," he said.