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The City MissionThe Warmth of the SeasonIn the winter months none feel the cold more than the Homeless. Erie has a network of shelters catering to the needs of a specific population: single men, women and children, families, veterans, and so forth. Warming centers are a type of no-frills shelter that offers a place to get in from the cold. Many are run by volunteers and are open all night.A warming center in Erie is run by the Mental Health Association of Northwest PA at its building at 1101 Peach St, downtown. Bill Grove, the MHA’s director, saw the need arising within a population of mental health service consumers normally served by the organization. “Some of them have to be out of their homes or apartments at night because they can’t co-exist with someone who uses drugs or alcohol, or their medication makes them restless and drives them outside, or they may have missed curfew at another of the traditional shelters,” observed Grove.
Nationally, it is estimated that approximately half of people experiencing homelessness suffer from mental health or substance abuse issues, and about a quarter of the chronically homeless population suffers from serious mental illness.
The Mental Health Association is looking for individuals and organizations to “adopt” winter weekends for the balance of the winter. For more information, contact the MHA at 452-4462 or see its website at www.mhanp.org.
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