The Springs Rescue Mission is seeing near record numbers heading into summer. When summer arrives and temperatures go up, there can be a drop in the number of people showing up at homeless shelters.
One factor is the Salvation Army emergency winter warming shelter closing for the season a few months back. You have to consider, however, that some show up there only during extreme cold. The high numbers are the Springs Rescue Mission, are happening as summer approaches.
"For summer we’re going to be at full capacity," said Springs Rescue Mission, Development Director, Cindy Johnson. Capacity for men and women in the shelter is 300. Numbers for the month of May are on track to duplicate April, when the average number of people per night in the shelter was 291. It is very close to a mid-winter record of 293 average.
In addition, consider the free meals offered by the Rescue Mission, as well as Marion House Soup Kitchen. Combined they serve up to 1,200 meals a day. "We feed people. A lot of them are homeless, but we also feed people that are living below poverty," said Johnson.
A summer break will not be happening at the Rescue Mission. "The thing that we need, though, during the summer months are mostly more food, because a lot of people are on vacation that typically give and so we’re trying to gear up for our food needs," said Johnson.
To supplement the food needs, Springs Rescue Mission is holding a food drive through July 4th called 4 by the 4th. They are asking for donations of four cans of food.
