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Grace CC winter shelter for homeless women needs sturdy shelving for 6×8′ space. Call Marsha: 336.379.1936

On Friday night, May 15th, hundreds of area youth are expected to sleep outside at Grace Community Church on Lee Street to raise awareness of homelessness, in an event sponsored by New Jerusalem Cathedral (see video). They will sleep in safety, protected by Greensboro police officers, on the same grounds that church leaders voted to post with “no trespassing” signs last year, in response to large numbers of homeless people sleeping on the property.  Irony.   (Grace also housed dozens of women inside this year, in a winter emergency shelter.)

Read more on Awareness-raising teens to sleep outside where homeless can’t…

Photo credit: John Newsom; News & Record

Overnight temperatures in Greensboro last night were in the 30’s. Community winter emergency shelters (the WE program) all closed by April 1st, a two-week extension for most. Firefighters responded to an early morning fire in a vacant building at the corner of Lee and Aycock streets this morning. The News & Record reports:

Read more on Shelters close, temps drop, building burns……

Betty Ann Scott stayed at our church’s women’s emergency shelter for a while this winter.  She had medical problems, mental illness and an addiction disorder.  Shelter staff and volunteers reached out for help for Betty Ann.  At a special dinner marking the close of the winter shelter this past week, residents paused to remember Betty Ann, who died shortly after leaving Grace’s shelter and being placed in a community-based residential program for the homeless mentally ill.  The News & Record’s Lorraine Ahearn writes about mental health reform, Betty Ann’s death, and the system that failed to protect her:

Read more on Homeless, addicted, mentally ill: The death of Betty Ann Scott…

done w/street outreach 4 tonite; some spots more ppl than b4; some empty; many new faces; need 2 find where ppl went after winter shelter

Busy day today. 1st NightWatch since winter shelters closed; more homeless people on street. Lots of preparation before the team goes out!

Sent this message to our NightWatch team today:

The WE program emergency winter shelter ended today. NightWatch should see more people on the street from now through next winter. The number of unsheltered homeless people has increased dramatically from last year. Greensboro Urban Ministry is seeing an increase of 30-40% in people seeking a shelter bed and Mike Aiken emphasized to me that these are NEW homeless people, not chronic folks rotating through the shelter. The WE program housed over 100 people. A number of those folks are moving into transitional or permanent housing, but the majority of them do not have housing, as far as I know, and we will likely see them back outside as we do street outreach.

Read more on NightWatch expects to see more homeless on street…

Church shelter helps homeless: http://tinyurl.com/cx9kf9 — celebration at women’s last night at Greensboro winter emergency shelter

Winter Emergency Shelter Celebration Videos http://greensboropolitics.com/?p=820

At celebration of love for Grace’s women’s shelter; sitting in the river, listening; God has blessed His daughters; peace…

At Grace, celebration of love for women’s shelter; ladies sitting as a family; also remembering two who died; Rashonda reading her poem now

mixed emotions re: dinner tonight w/guys @HIVE & ladies @Grace; end of winter shelter; bittersweet; new starts 4 some, back outside 4 others