Yesterday at lunchtime, every single table spot at the Community Drop-In Center at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church on West Main Street in Newark was filled. Over 55 Licking County residents were enjoying a lunch of spaghetti and salad with rolls.
There were so many people that a half-dozen sat on the floor.
“It’s a packed house,” said Greg Bossart, who along with Donna Gibson and a staff of committed volunteers, operates the drop-in center. “We have people everywhere.”
Read more: Listen: An artist’s interpretation of conversations at the community drop-in center
They are also housing 3 cats and 5 dogs that are crated and kept safe.
The drop-in center is open year round from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and shares the same building used by the Licking County Emergency Warming Center (5:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.). And right now the warming center has been open since last Friday and will be open until Monday morning – a record-breaking length of time for the volunteer-operated center.
And in that record-breaking stretch of time, the warming center has supported a record-breaking number of people seeking shelter from the sub-zero degree temperatures: Since Friday, the warming center has served between 43 and 56 people a night, according to the United Way of Licking County. That’s significantly more than have stayed at the shelter in earlier cold snaps.
When it’s open, the warming center’s overnight guests are housed in a number of rooms downstairs as well as the church sanctuary. The drop-in center operates upstairs in the fellowship hall. There’s about an hour between when one opens and the other closes. So Bossart said that the drop-in center has extended its hours so there’s no gap in services and no one has to wait outside.
When it warms back up, the drop-in center will go back to its usual schedule, 9:30 to 4:00, Monday through Friday. But for now, it’s open and serving food, sharing bicycle pumps, letting people charge phones and providing warmth and cheer during an unprecedented cold spell in central Ohio.
Bossart is amiable and hard-working, but even he said that it has been a hard week.
“Oh, my gosh,” he said. “We are packed to the gills right now.”
Last year at this time, he said, it was nothing like this.
Bossart said that people ask him all the time what they need. What he needs, in addition to volunteers, he said, is more space. After a week of everyone in this space, he said, some people are getting cabin fever. The need, he said, is great.
Bossart and Gibson have been here every day since last Friday. Their days are busy and focused on problem-solving – one after the other. And sometimes the problems accumulate. But, they said, they have help – a crack team of whipsmart volunteers including community members Marilyn, Jess Gothard and Cher Fouty.
Fouty is the primary kitchen volunteer and was a godsend over the weekend, according to Bossart. Her husband even came in to assist and helped solve a plumbing conundrum.
As they spoke to The Reporting Project, Gothard walked around greeting guests and passing out chocolate-covered donuts.
Gothard said that it’s been hectic the last few days. She does a little bit of everything around the place, but her main role is as primary closer – she cleans, sweeps and mops at the end of the day. She said she was just happy to be here. Her car was plowed in and it took her a while to dig out.
Things are going as well as can be expected, Gibson said. They’ve been working so hard, but they say that everyone has been immensely kind and supportive with community members jumping to fill donation requests for specific items.
Some at the center struggle with all the people in close quarters. As one man told The Reporting Project, it’s a lot to deal with when “everybody’s tight together.”
But, Gibson said, guests have been kind to one another despite the circumstances.
Then Gibson pointed to one of her volunteers. “That’s Marilyn,” Gibson said. “She’s got the best attitude in the entire place.”
Marilyn grew up in Newark and was once unhoused. She said the drop-in center is a special place for her. That is why she keeps coming back to volunteer.
“They are like my family. I was homeless, and they took care of me. They took me in. They took care of me and didn’t even know me.”
“I like helping out,” Marilyn said, “because that’s what family does.”
She said that she believes in the human dignity of all people.
“Everybody deserves respect. I don’t care if you like them or not. You respect them”
Outside the snow is piled up on the sidewalks and the temperature is around 13 degrees with windchills making it feel much colder. People dart outside for some fresh air and quickly dart back inside where there is warmth and humanity.
“There are so many different problems and situations in this room,” Gibson said, “that I don’t think members of the community realize.”
Gibson looked around the room and wondered aloud who would not be here if the warming center, if the drop-in, didn’t exist. “Who would be gone?” she asked.
That is why they have stayed open. They were open during the snowstorm on Sunday, when over a foot fell on the region. Gibson said she couldn’t see anything on her drive on Sunday morning. She drove 10 mph the whole way, but she made it.
“I got here,” Gibson said, “and was resigned that I might not be able to make it home.”
As the snow was coming down hard on Sunday, Bossart said, it was comfortable but crowded.
“It was a normal day. We played trivia! We were doing what we were supposed to be doing. We were helping people out.”
As if on cue a woman walked up to hand Bossart some gloves she had found. “Those are Larry’s,” Greg shouted as a man came up to claim them.
“Aren’t they [yours] Larry? I remember seeing them on you the other day.”
He nodded thanks and took his gloves.
Another problem solved. Another neighbor helped.
How you can help:
- Bossart said the drop-in center needs protein (chicken, ground beef) to help make hearty meals.
- To volunteer for the drop-in center contact Greg Bossart at (614) 266-2224 or gregboss61@gmail.com
- To volunteer for the emergency warming center contact Emma Chapman echapman@unitedwaylc.org or sign up at www.unitedwaylc.org/get-involved/