LOGAN, Utah — With winter still going strong, those vulnerable in our community still need a place to stay warm.
The William A Burnard Warming Center opened this past December in Logan. Founder Nicole Burnard, who named the center after her grandfather, says it was one of the first of its kind in Cache Valley to help over 100 people who needed a place to stay when temperatures dropped below freezing.
“We definitely made a difference and a positive impact and saved lives this winter,” said Nicole Burnard.
When the center opened, Burnard said it was staffed entirely by volunteers who stayed through the night, every night.
“The most people we had in the center at one time was 20 people," she said. "That was a consistent thing in February, and then pretty much we were in the range of 15-18 people throughout the rest of the season.”
They didn’t anticipate winter to be this long, however, with the conditional use permit allowing them only to operate till March 31.
“When it got closer, we were looking at the weather and we were like, oh wow, it’s going to continue to be cold, and we couldn’t really adjust or extend our operation,” explained Burnard. “We developed a really awesome community and we’re also feeling worried because we want to make sure our guests are taken care of.”
So, they partnered with a local nonprofit, 4 Helping Hearts, to continue helping those in need.
“We decided that we would help support them financially," said Burnard. "We contributed a couple of thousand dollars to them so they could connect the guests and anyone who needed shelter this week into hotels."
Another new addition this year is the Salt Lake City public library increasing its efforts to help people.
“To some people, that’s books, to others that would be programming," said Daniel Neville-Rehbehn, with the Salt Lake City Public Library. "For some folks, it’s the social services.”
The library added a new social services coordinator so people can walk in to get connected to the resources they need.
“Being an organization that can support the community," said Neville-Rehbehn. "We are here for people to come, spend the time, not have to spend any money, just have a warm place to stay."
The State Homelessness Coordinator Wayne Niederhauser says shelters and resource centers across Salt Lake County saw more people than they expected.
“340 beds that we planned on, more than we ever had before and we got them open sooner than we ever had opened them before on Nov 1.," said Niederhauser. "It was apparent that we needed at least another 100 beds through the winter."
The goal is to help find a more permanent solution for those in need.
