A Washougal church will open as a temporary, severe weather shelter from 6 p.m. Thursday, through 7 a.m. Friday, Feb. 22-23. Temperatures are expected to dip into the mid-20s again on Thursday, putting the area’s homeless population at risk.
St. Matthew Lutheran Church will open its doors to anyone needing to escape the freezing weather, at 716 Washougal River Road in Washougal. The church provided overnight accommodations for three people on Sunday night and two people on Monday night, during the recent spate of freezing weather.
The severe weather shelter was not open Tuesday or Wednesday night because there were not enough volunteers to adequately staff the shelter on those nights.
St. Matthew Pastor Bob Barber said Refuel Washougal has provided volunteers for the temporary, overnight shelter. Refuel Washougal also serves free dinners from 4
to 6:30 p.m., every Friday, in the Washougal Community Center at 1681 “C” St.
The Salvation Army of Camas-Washougal has provided the air mattresses and bedding, as well as volunteers, for the severe weather shelter at St. Matthew.
“We’re coordinating day shelter hours to support the overnight shelter efforts and helping spread awareness of the shelter through social media,” said Salvation Army Corps assistant Jessica Wheeler.
For more, call 360-835-3171.
