Crowded Homeless Shelter Looking for New Home

 ========= Old Image Removed =========Array
(
    [_wp_attached_file] => Array
        (
            [0] => 2016/06/IMG_9180-scaled.jpg
        )

    [_wp_attachment_metadata] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:6:{s:5:"width";i:2560;s:6:"height";i:1704;s:4:"file";s:27:"2016/06/IMG_9180-scaled.jpg";s:5:"sizes";a:14:{s:6:"medium";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-336x224.jpg";s:5:"width";i:336;s:6:"height";i:224;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:5:"large";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-771x513.jpg";s:5:"width";i:771;s:6:"height";i:513;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-140x140.jpg";s:5:"width";i:140;s:6:"height";i:140;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:12:"medium_large";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-768x511.jpg";s:5:"width";i:768;s:6:"height";i:511;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"1536x1536";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:22:"IMG_9180-1536x1023.jpg";s:5:"width";i:1536;s:6:"height";i:1023;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"2048x2048";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:22:"IMG_9180-2048x1364.jpg";s:5:"width";i:2048;s:6:"height";i:1364;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"wbhm-icon";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:18:"IMG_9180-80x80.jpg";s:5:"width";i:80;s:6:"height";i:80;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-600x338.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:338;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-600x600.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-467x311.jpg";s:5:"width";i:467;s:6:"height";i:311;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-398x265.jpg";s:5:"width";i:398;s:6:"height";i:265;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:28:"ab-block-post-grid-landscape";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-600x400.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:400;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:25:"ab-block-post-grid-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-600x600.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:20:"IMG_9180-125x125.jpg";s:5:"width";i:125;s:6:"height";i:125;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}}s:10:"image_meta";a:12:{s:8:"aperture";s:1:"0";s:6:"credit";s:0:"";s:6:"camera";s:0:"";s:7:"caption";s:0:"";s:17:"created_timestamp";s:1:"0";s:9:"copyright";s:0:"";s:12:"focal_length";s:1:"0";s:3:"iso";s:1:"0";s:13:"shutter_speed";s:1:"0";s:5:"title";s:0:"";s:11:"orientation";s:1:"0";s:8:"keywords";a:0:{}}s:14:"original_image";s:12:"IMG_9180.jpg";}
        )

    [_media_credit] => Array
        (
            [0] => Lessie Dingler
        )

    [_navis_media_credit_org] => Array
        (
            [0] => WBHM
        )

    [_navis_media_can_distribute] => Array
        (
            [0] => 
        )

    [_edit_lock] => Array
        (
            [0] => 1581698309:113
        )

)
1636124276 
1467366494

Residents call it “the last house on the block.” Raymond Johnson has been homeless for about a year and half, and he says the Firehouse Shelter is the only place he goes. They help him with housing and substance abuse treatment. “And they also helped me find some help with my mental health issues,” Johnson continues. “So I can get my pills without having to pay for them, because my meds are kind of expensive. One bottle of pills is over $300.”

Johnson has four children and without support from the Firehouse Shelter he wouldn’t be able to provide the financial assistance they need, he says.

The Firehouse Shelter serves thousands of homeless people in Birmingham like Johnson and has been a staple to the community since 1983, but they’ve outgrown their home on Third Ave. N. and are working on moving to a bigger facility.

“We’re really looking for a building to restore dignity and respect to the homeless in Birmingham,” says Anne Wright, executive director of the shelter.

 

This room holds the Firehouse Shelter's clothes donations.

Lessie Dingler,WBHM
This room holds the Firehouse Shelter’s clothes donations.

 

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development there are more than 1,100 homeless people in the Birmingham metro area on any given night. The Firehouse Shelter is serving close to 4,000 a year and the building has become unsafe according to Wright. She says two years ago a woman ran a red light in front of the shelter and hit four clients that were standing on the sidewalk.

The new building on Second Ave. N. is built entirely around a courtyard so clients can enjoy the outdoors in privacy and safety. The facility will also feature a library, expanded dormitories, meditation space, and a chapel for people to attend worship.

“We’re really looking at the needs of Birmingha, and working to identify it and meet those needs in a compassionate cost effective way,” Wright adds.

Residents and Firehouse staff hope the new $7.8 million shelter will relieve overcrowding, but Wright says it’s going to be a long journey. It’s a decade-long project, and they are only about two years in.

 

The week of devastating floods that Spaniards will never forget

After a storm devastated parts of eastern Spain last week, survivors are becoming impatient at the steady government rescue efforts. On Sunday, it all went down in the town of Paiporta.

Stressed at work over the election? 3 ways to minimize political tension on the job

Political disagreements have sent workplace incivility to an all-time high this year, costing employers some $2 billion per day in lost productivity. Here’s how to cut down on watercooler fights over today’s election – and its aftermath. 

Here’s how NPR will report the 2024 election results

NPR relies on results and race calls from The Associated Press for presidential races, other federal elections and statewide contests.

Lucas & Arthur Jussen release ‘little diamonds’ EP of lesser-known piano duets

NPR's A Martínez speaks with Dutch brothers Lucas and Arthur Jussen about their new EP, Rêve, featuring piano duets by lesser-known composers influenced by — or rejecting — French Impressionism.

A wild election is coming to a close — and no one is sure how it will end

From candidate swaps to assassination attempts, the final months of the campaign has been a whirlwind. Here's why the outcome is so consequential.

Trump and allies have primed supporters to falsely believe he has no chance of losing

Many of former President Donald Trump’s supporters don’t believe he lost in 2020. Despite a close race again in 2024, Trump and allies still falsely claim the only way he loses is because of cheating.

More Economy Coverage