The homeless shelter has operated for the past 18 years
Gilroy – Beginning Monday, cold nights will be a thing of the past for area homeless. EHC Lifebuilders opens its doors at the National Guard Armory for the Cold Weather Shelter Program.
The shelter has operated for the past 18 years and is open from 6pm to 6am daily to the end of March.
“Getting people in off the streets when it’s so cold outside is not only lifesaving, but it opens the door to an array of services to help people out of homelessness,” said EHC LifeBuilders President and CEO Barry Del Buono.
In addition to a roof over their heads and a warm place to sleep, homeless individuals will receive dinner, breakfast and support services such as medical care and ESL workshops.
“Being able to open the shelters at this time of year is crucial in providing a full continuum of support to the homeless,” Del Buono said.
The county’s street-by-street count of its homeless population in December found 401 people living on Gilroy’s streets and in the city’s shelters, and 7,121 homeless people across the county. Of Gilroy’s 401 homeless, 152 were on the street, with 249 in shelters. Morgan Hill had 21 people on the street and nine in shelters, and San Martin had nine street homeless and 96 people spending the night in a shelter.
On a typical winter night, all 125 beds at National Guard Armory on Wren Avenue are full, as are the beds available at Saint Joseph’s Family center and the Boccardo Family Living Center in San Martin.
EHC recently began construction on a 25,000-square-foot transitional housing shelter in north Gilroy. The project, a collaboration with nonprofit South County Housing, represents the last piece of the Sobrato Transitional Center now under construction at 9435 Monterey Road. South County The Sobrato Transitional Housing Center, a year-round shelter on Monterey Road, is scheduled to open in 2007. When it does, the Gilroy Armory will close its doors.
Details: 539-2100.
