Macon-Bibb community groups come together to house homeless for freezing cold holidays
Macon-Bibb County, United to End Homelessness and the Macon Coalition to End Homelessness are providing extra beds and offering free transportation for the homeless in Macon ahead of severe cold weather on Christmas weekend.
Temperatures over Christmas weekend are predicted to go into single digits, NWS said Thursday. With the weather in mind, several organizations have teamed up to offer shelter for the homeless.
Brookdale Resource Center and Salvation Army provided the free beds, together featuring 70 total. The beds opened up additional space at both locations, which were close to capacity prior to the effort.
“This is a long-term problem, but with this weather coming in, we want to create a solution to that immediate risk for them,” said Jake Hall, executive director of United to End Homelessness. “This is what it looks like for a community to come together to combat this.”
People using the beds will be housed and fed for the duration of the weekend.
The beds at Brookdale were expected to open at 4 p.m. Friday afternoon and stay open until Monday morning. All were welcome to the beds, and thanks to the Macon Transit Authority, they’ll be accessible.
MTA offered free bus rides beginning Thursday afternoon and running through Christmas Eve, helping people around the city get to the resource center and Salvation Army.
“Public transportation is vital to our riders for many reasons, and we are pleased to ease their burden as the holiday approaches and everyone is faced with plummeting temperatures,” MTA CEO Craig Ross said in a press release.
Hall acknowledged the community effort being a great sign for Macon’s ability to work together to solve issues.
“This all really stems from togetherness and collaboration. People like Spencer Hawkins with Macon EMA, the sheriff’s office providing security, the food bank, the Brookdale and Salvation Army employees, MTA… they’re the ones that make this happen,” Hall said.
The collaboration is especially important following the deaths of two homeless men from the cold in Macon two years prior.
“Things like this can come together so quickly because we keep these organizations connected and work together,” Hall said. “Combining these services and working together can help us solve the chronic problems of homelessness.”
This story was originally published December 23, 2022 at 10:53 AM.