A men's shelter in Chatham is expanding its hours, as demand for services continues to grow amidst the pandemic.
Hope Haven announced on Monday that effective immediately, the shelter will be open seven days a week from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
In April, Hope Haven officials made the difficult choice to temporarily close because of COVID-19. According to General Manager Loree Bailey, the shelter was considered essential and could remain open if operators chose to do so. However, Bailey said they made the decision in order to help protect the shelter's volunteers, something she said was one of the hardest things the organization has ever had to do.
"I can’t even put words to it. We weren't forced to closed but morally, we felt forced to close. At that time we were made up 100 per cent by volunteers," she explained. "We had to sit down as the board of directors and say ‘are we being socially responsible by keeping the doors open with limited PPE, with limited staffing and with not a lot of understanding of the virus?' It was a really hard decision."
In hopes of providing people with a safe place to get out of the extreme heat, the shelter opened its doors back up in June, but only for three days a week. According to Bailey, the shelter would see about 100 visits over the course of the three days.
With the need for daytime services clearly in high demand, Hope Haven Worked with The Municipality of Chatham-Kent and United Way to Chatham-Kent to expand the services.
"The numbers are not showing any signs of going down," Bailey said. "That’s obviously a terrible thing, that's nothing to celebrate. The celebration comes in that we can help more now."
Individuals can come to Hope Haven during the day for the use of several amenities including showers, bathrooms and laundry machines. The shelter also offers meals, groceries as well as winter coats and accessories.
Bailey said the facility is not only intended for those who are homeless but people who may be struggling financially as well.
"Some of the places that people are living in are really rough," said said. "By rough, I mean a roof but no water, no hydro, no utilities. People are living very marginalized. They may be able to afford housing but they can’t afford groceries, they can’t afford to go to the laundromat."
Pre-COVID-19, Hope Haven offered overnight accommodations. However, Bailey said current pandemic restrictions would make it too difficult for them to resume overnight stays.
She added that the new daytime hours are just a starting point, and they are open to expanding hours even further based on demand.
"Right now, we're just going to go day by day," said Bailey.