Outreach workers spent Tuesday in the extreme cold trying to reach the homeless to provide critical care and support in the frigid conditions that have hit the Chicago area this week.
“We started at 6 a.m. this morning so its gotten a little bit warmer,” said Desirae Fischer, who is the Homeless Outreach Team Leader at Thresholds. “But it’s been about -4 as the low today.”
Multiple teams with Thresholds have been braving the conditions since the weekend, going from tent to tent across the city, including right here on Lower Wacker Drive.
“I think people for the most are just happy to grab a couple of things from us and see that people are actually out there you know providing resources,” said Fischer.
She and her team stocked up their vehicle with essential items, passing out emergency kits along with handwarmers, hats, and gloves. They’re also doing rounds on the CTA Red Line where they said many people are trying to stay warm on the trains.
“Today when we were outreaching we saw less people on there, so I’m wondering if people actually ended up going to the warming centers or going to the 24/7 warming centers that are opened right now,” she said.
Several churches, including New Life Covenant Church in Humboldt Park opened its doors over the weekend to help house the homeless by setting up an emergency shelter with 40 cots available.
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“This is life and death I mean this is really hard on these individuals,” said Pastor David Marrero. “When you see them walking in, they’re just in pain, literally in pain, wanting the help and the resources. This is necessary this is essential for this time and we as a church we just want to let them know that we have a space open and available.”
Pastor Marrero told NBC Chicago the emergency shelter at 2704 W. North Ave. will remain open from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. as long as the temperature is 15 degrees or below.
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“I’m grateful that we have the opportunity,” he said. “God has given us the space and us utilizing the space to be able to help people.”
His church is giving the most vulnerable a place to shower, eat, and stay overnight, a place where they can feel safe for the time being.
“They expressed to us they feel like they’ve been seen, they feel like they’ve been heard and we feel as we’re giving dignity back to these individuals,” he said.
