Houston County organizations join forces to plan new hub to serve homeless population
Nonprofits, municipalities, churches and businesses across Warner Robins and Houston County are collaborating to create a new hub to serve the community’s homeless population.
The City of Warner Robins is leading the initiative alongside partners from various sectors to form the Greater Houston Coalition.
The new coalition includes United Way of Central Georgia, the cities of Centerville and Perry, the Houston County Board of Commissioners and Houston County Board of Education as well as numerous nonprofit and business leaders.
Warner Robins Mayor LaRhonda Patrick said about 65 people participated in a planning session – the second meeting about the initiative so far.
“There are at least 100 individuals who are considered homeless in our area right now that we know of,” Patrick said. “We’re going to have boots on the ground working with United Way of Central Georgia to compile the proper count for our area to see what the need is.
“And it was shared that we have 400 children in our school system in Houston County who are considered homeless right now. That makes it high on everyone else’s agenda because that’s 400 children and who knows how many parents are impacted, hidden in plain sight right here in Houston County.”
Patrick said the city’s short-term goal is to support and spread the word about a warming center reopening next January at a local church.
Their long-term goal is to open a new “hub” and shelter where local organizations can collaborate to provide comprehensive, inclusive services for the homeless.
Reopening a warming center
The Table at First Christian Church in Warner Robins first opened their overnight warming center in January after a chance encounter with Warner Robins code enforcement officer Brian Wise.
“There was a homeless guy on Carl Vinson when it was the coldest part of the year, in January,” Wise said. “And I stopped to check on him and he said, ‘Officer Wise, can you help me? I don’t have anywhere to go.’ And he was staying in a buggy with blankets … and we put him up in a hotel that Friday night. And I thought, what am I gonna do with him on Saturday?
“And Pastor Carter, who was then with The Table church, their card fell out of my truck. So I thought I’d call him because they were wanting to start a warming center, but I didn’t expect them to do it right then.”
Wise said the church soon called him back and said they would open the warming center immediately.
After closing at the end of the winter season, the warming center was reopened temporarily in December due to frigid temperatures and will officially reopen on Jan. 2. Wise said it will also be available during the summer months.
“The city’s goal is to help spread the word about this option for individuals who may want to partake of that opportunity, and also spread it out to the community, because they need community support to survive, for donations, for volunteers, for leadership when it comes to operating this warming center which does not charge anyone any money,” Patrick said.
Planning a new hub for the homeless
Wise said he works closely with the homeless in his role as a code enforcement officer and tries to help them.
When Mayor Patrick took office, Wise approached her about starting a homeless center.
“She agreed because that’s what she’d been wanting to do and it was part of her campaign,” he said. “She has a heart for the homeless just like I do … We’re going to keep fighting for them because we just have so many here and they just need a voice, somebody to speak up for them.”
The City of Warner Robins is seeking to buy a space to become a hub for organizations with the Greater Houston Coalition to operate and collectively provide free resources for the homeless.
“We’ll have a place for the community organizations to come in with whatever their mission is, be it providing food, clothing, counseling, medical resources, vaccinations and all the many resources we have inside our community that target the homeless community,” Patrick said. “So it’s creating that one place that’s open to everyone to come into, for them to provide the resources to those that are most in need.
Patrick said the city is especially looking to help “chronically homeless” and they will ensure there are no unnecessary barriers or criteria that would prevent people from getting help.
The hub is intended to be a place where people experiencing homelessness can stay long-term and receive career services to find jobs and “get back on their feet.”
“We’ve got to stay mission focused, so that we can make major strides to bring this city-owned homeless shelter to fruition,” Patrick said.
