The Village Shelter
There’s no excuse to leave our neighbors outside with no options when the weather is life-threatening. Every Village should - and can - have a shelter where neighbors can sleep - no questions asked. In our Village in southern Vermont, there are enough of us who know that shelter is a basic need - no need to “qualify” for this shelter, everyone is welcomed with love.
Beloved Winter Shelter
What began as a Village School fundraiser to pay for motel rooms for our homeless neighbors when temperatures dropped to single digits evolved into a community led shelter in a local church the following winter (Beloved Winter Shelter). We are excited to open the same church doors back up this winter but as The Village Shelter, moving even further away from existing social services as we reclaim our capacity to help one another directly. Neighbors helping neighbors.
Singular Purpose
The Village Shelter offers 12 cots with bedding in a heated room with two restrooms and two awake hosts. Besides a light dinner and a first aid kit - that’s it. By narrowing our offering to this specific and vital need we start reclaiming our capacity to help one another directly.
Infinite Impact
Helping one another through the cold winter is what builds relationships that get communities through difficult times. The Village Shelter is where we trade our weapons for white flags and come together in a shared understanding that we all breathe the same air and drink the same water.