'You can get sick, and you can die'

COEUR d'ALENE - Christine Johnson isn't wild about spending this winter in North Idaho.

"A tent is not an ideal place to be sleeping when it's piling up with snow outside," she said Thursday while visiting Fresh Start in Coeur d'Alene.

The 25-year-old hasn't been able to find work. Without a job and with little money, she has been staying at a temporary St. Vincent de Paul shelter, but her 90 days there are almost up.

So with snow and temperatures in the teens looming, Johnson said she'll probably be spending some nights at the drop-in center for the homeless at 16th and Sherman.

"It's warm, you're not out in the cold. You're not freezing to death," she said. "You're not going to get sick and die, which is a good possibility. If you don't have a warm place to go, you can get sick, and you can die."

Fresh Start is expecting to have more overnight guests this winter, since learning that Ignite Hope, a shelter that opened last year in Post Falls, will likely not be around.

Tom Hamilton of Ground Force Manufacturing, which hosted the warming shelter in one of the company's warehouses along Seltice Way between Post Falls and Coeur d'Alene last year, said they want to have an Ignite Hope shelter this winter.

However, finding a building is the biggest hurdle, he said, because the Ground Force warehouse used last year is no longer available.

The shelter served 50 people a night from Nov. 21 to March 31 last winter.

"We haven't given up yet," Hamilton said. "If we had a facility, we believe funding would follow. But, when you're looking for a shelter, you have to take a lot of things into consideration including affordability and the neighbors. We'd still love to do something, but there needs to be partnerships."

Howard Martinson, executive director of Fresh Start, said they already have a significant need for winter clothes and gear for homeless men, women and children homeless.

Jackets, gloves and hats, along with tents, sleeping bags, blankets and tarps, will be in demand as cold, wet weather settles in.

Natalie Unzicker is pitching in. The Hayden woman made and dropped off 18 headbands on Thursday morning.

"I just thought they might be needed," she said. "I thought they would be nice and warm."

Fresh Start had around 800 overnight guests last winter when it remained open during nights it dropped to 20 degrees. This winter, it plans to keep its doors open 7 p.m. to noon the next day when it hits 25 degrees.

Martinson said it could double the number of overnight stays.

"One thing people tell us, they feel safe," said Lynn Tarbox, Fresh Start board member.

During its normal hours of 7 a.m. to noon, Monday through Saturday, about 50 clients drop in for food, coffee or clothes, a shower, do laundry, check the Internet or just relax on one of the couches.

Tarbox said it could cost around $2,000 extra each month by being open more nights, due to increased need for staffing, supplies and utilities.

Fresh Start operates on less than $100,000 a year, with a few part-time paid staffers and volunteers.

"It always takes money," Martinson said. "It breaks my heart, but it's the reality that charities, they need money."

Jeff Conroy, executive director at St. Vincent de Paul in Coeur d'Alene, said they are also collecting sleeping bags, blankets and other clothing and gear to help the homeless survive this winter.

St. Vincent's plans to open its warming center at 202 W. Seventh St. in Post Falls from Nov. 1. to Feb. 28.

"We are pleased tooffer this necessary service to help some of the most vulnerable people during harsh weather," he said. "In planning for the harsh weather we must consider the homeless and their safety."

Like Fresh Start, the warming center will be activated when temperatures are predicted to fall below 25 degrees.

Conroy fears there may be more homeless this winter in North Idaho.

The last three point-in-time counts have shown declines in the area's homeless population, which last year was around 750.

That may have been due to a three-year, $854,354 grant St. Vincent's received for homeless prevention and rapid re-housing that helped more than 1,200 families. The funds paid for people's rents in danger of eviction or found affordable housing for people on the street.

That grant, however, has run out, and that could put more people on the streets, Conroy said. If that happens, St. Vincent's will be ready.

"Our role is to serve the community any way they need it to be done," he said.

Alicia Cobb, also at Fresh Start Thursday morning, said the warming centers are definitely needed come November.

"Most people here live in a tent. It's nice to just have a place to sit that's warm during the winter," she said.

The 20-year-old found herself homeless after losing her job early this year. She has been living out of a tent, but worries about the coming conditions.

"It's going to be really cold this winter," she said.

Cobb said she may move to a warmer climate. If not, she'll turn to Fresh Start when it's too chilly to sleep in a tent.

"I'll probably end up staying here a couple nights," she said.

Martinson said despite any extra expenses, Fresh Start will open its doors longer and more often this winter. It's the right thing to do, he added, because there are many people who have nowhere to go.

"For some of them, it's the difference between life and death," he said. "It's not uncommon to have a few fatalities every year from exposure to the elements. You can imagine spending the night in a Dumpster versus being at Fresh Start."