City Offers Emergency Shelter For Hundreds Escaping Cold
Brutal cold prompted the City of Birmingham to open an emergency warming shelter over the weekend. City officials say they’ll keep it open through Friday, but they need more volunteers and supplies.
Hundreds of Birmingham’s homeless found food and warm refuge inside the South Exhibition Hall at the BJCC. They spent the night in the makeshift shelter Monday and many stayed throughout the day Tuesday.
Don Lupo, director of the Mayor’s Office of Citizens Assistance, says about 200 people checked in during the weekend nights. Monday night, when the temperature dropped even lower, the number of people almost doubled.
Lupo says it’s part of a bigger problem.
“We only have three emergency shelters – the Salvation Army, First Light and the Firehouse Shelter, and none of them have enough beds,” he says.
Volunteers help staff the warming center and area restaurants provide food. But there are other needs, he says.
“We need grilled cheese sandwiches, soup. We need chili, personal-hygiene-type items, Chapstick. They go through Chapstick like crazy,” he says.
The warming station will be at the BJCC through Wednesday morning. It will close at 9 a.m. and reopen at 5 p.m. at the Boutwell Auditorium. Lupo says donations can be delivered to the warming station at the BJCC and at the Boutwell.
Review by Senate Democrats finds more unreported luxury trips by Clarence Thomas
A report by Democrats on the Judiciary Committee found additional travel taken in 2021 by Thomas but not reported on his annual financial disclosure, including trips on private jets and a yacht trip.
Where did Barry Jenkins feel safe as a kid? Atop a tree
Director Barry Jenkins is best known for films like "Moonlight" and "If Beale Street Could Talk." On Wild Card, he opens up about where he felt the safest as a kid.
Israeli strikes across Gaza kill at least 20, including five children
Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Sunday killed at least 20 people, including five children, Palestinian medical officials said.
I discovered one way to fight loneliness: The Germans call it a Stammtisch
Modern life can be lonely. Some are looking to an old German tradition – of drinking and conversation – to deepen connection through regular meetups.
This Christmas I’ll be grieving. Here’s how I’ll be finding joy.
Since her husband's death, newscaster Windsor Johnston has been looking for ways to recapture joy and continue her healing journey — one that's taken her to a place she'd never expected.
On tap for the holidays: A blend of multicultural drink traditions and fond memories
For this year's All Things Considered holiday cocktail interview, we visited Providencia in Washington, D.C., a bar that brings its owners' personal stories to life.
