HTLC Hypothermia Prevention Program — 2024
Written By: Tracy Strunk
Hypo 2024 seemed to be a bit more on the active side than previous years – every night Holy Trinity hosted right around 50 guests (sometimes a few more, sometimes a few less). The companion “red” church (we were the “green” church) hosted similar numbers nightly. Part of the increase may be due to an uptick in the numbers of unhoused persons in the County. Part may be that FACETS and the County made a specific decision this year to keep as many people in the program as possible, so repeated behavior that might have, in years past, resulted in a ban for the season, this year resulted in a ban of a night or two and then a return. Whatever the reason, numbers were high, and activity was high as well, especially around the beginning of the evening and then calming down as the night went on.
The week started with our guests having spent the previous week out in the western part of the county where a County bus strike curtailed movement, so even though it was pretty nice weather everyone had a lot of energy! We also had a last minute bit of excitement when the cleaning company we had engaged backed out at the last minute. Luckily, the cleaning crew used by our tenant, Building Blocks day care, was able to step in and did a great job for us all week, including Sunday morning! Fairfax County continues to provide reimbursement for the cleaning service, which is a nice benefit.
As usual Holy Trinity excelled at meals, everything from tacos to Thanksgiving in February on Thursday, to lasagna night by the WELCA book club. One night we even had Lynn Tedesco supervising her dinner from a wheelchair! Snacks, desserts and hot breakfast were provided all week by a host of volunteers, special thanks to Beth Search for coming in every morning for set up, and to Boy Scout Troop 140 who provided next day lunch and breakfast the night of their normal meeting.
In addition to great food, we had music from the Praise Project, the Bell Choir and Christus Choir (and a guest who often sat down at our piano to play a few tunes in the evening). Amy Loar and Judy Baker took turns doing mending and sewing projects (ask Judy about the guitar case she sewed for a guest!), and a good number of uno and chess games were played between volunteers and guests! We were happy to be able to put weekly bus passes on 46 metro cards and put some gas in about 5 cars so our guest were able to reach us and get to work or around for the week. All week long we kept up our “store” of gently used clothing and personal care items like toothpaste, food powder, socks and underwear. And on Sunday morning we passed out two $5 gift cards to each guest so they were able to access restaurants and coffee shops for the day while many public sites were closed.
This ministry could not succeed without the many helping hands, including Thrivent members who sponsored Thrivent Grant cards, those who contributed financially (including all those gift cards!) and shopped, Jane and Ray Sparnon who collected for and set up, and cleaned up the “store,” and everyone who came to help set up and clean up, and Marcia and Jeffrey Ihnen setting up the drink bar. The highlight is seeing the interactions between our guests and all of the volunteers who come in for the evening and to cover the overnight shift – we often say that the most important thing we can provide to our guests is the gift of seeing them and recognizing them as people and fellow children of God. It’s not always easy, but it’s always rewarding.
While not everything is about money, it’s worth noting that HTLC members provided over $3,000 worth of food, including dinner (and dessert!) for 60 every night, snacks every afternoon, and breakfast and bag lunch for our guests every morning. We spent around $700 on transportation for our guests (bus passes and gas for those with cars), and at least $700 in supplies including paper products, cleaning products, and staples like tea, coffee and lemonade. And as mentioned we gathered over $500 in gift cards to hand out Sunday morning. Perhaps even more amazing, we estimated all the shopping, cooking, cleaning, set up, and actual volunteering to be over 730 hours of volunteer time, the equivalent of over 18 weeks of full time work! That represents the work of at least 77 different individuals, not including those who contributed financially or with donations to our store!
While it’s nice to see some of our old guests who remember us (one gentleman always remembers Tracy’s basketball preferences), as usual it’s bittersweet that they are still in a state of homelessness. The Hypothermia program ends at the end of March, ironically on Easter Sunday this year, so please keep our guests in your prayers as they move back into the world, without knowing where they will be able to find a consistent safe place to sleep. Remember to see your neighbors, all your neighbors, and listen for the voice of God in their stories.