Volunteer orientation set: Warming shelter opens at Pullman city hall site

Nathan Weller, co-coordinator and Pullman City Council member, has announced that the Pullman Warming Center will have a Volunteer Orientation Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. before the warming center’s reopening in the basement of the new Pullman City Hall building, the former Encounter Ministries, at 190 SE Crestview.

The shelter will open from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m. on nights with temperatures below 30 degrees Fahrenheit. The warming shelter is a temporary emergency shelter for homeless persons to have a safe and warm place to go to in the extreme cold weather of the season.

The Pullman warming shelter provides 15 cots, with space for people to lie down without feeling cramped.

Weller wants the warming center to be a place to provide not only a warm space for the homeless to stay over on a cold night, but also a place to provide information to help people get back on their feet.

Volunteer shifts for the warming center are separated into three four-hour shifts from 7-11 p.m., 11 p.m. to 3 a.m., and from 3-7 a.m. There should be two volunteers on duty for each shift.

For those who have a New Years resolution to help others or to volunteer more, the Warming Center’s orientation might be the opportunity they are looking for.