Rochester council urged to do more for homeless: 'These people are somebody's somebody'
ROCHESTER — A small army of people urging the City Council's support for turning the Willand Warming Center, or another location, into a full-time shelter made their voices heard Tuesday night.
They spoke for more than an hour, led off by Amy Malone, one of the directors of Karlee's Home Team, the organization operating the center this season. The seasonal warming center, which opens during extreme cold and winter storms, is scheduled close at the end of March.
Malone, a former Rochester City Council member, began with an update for the council. Willand is a collaboration between Rochester, Somersworth and Dover. She has gone to the other cities as well, with the same mission, to get a 24/7 shelter so people staying there have a place to go and are not left out in the cold when the center closes for the season.
More than 250 people served by Willand Warming Center in 2023-24 season
"We served 279 individuals over the course of the season," said Malone. "That is double what the other seasons saw. Of that, Rochester citizens represented the highest amount. Others came from Somersworth, Dover, Farmington and Milton."
Malone said several councilors have been to the center, and she thanked them for their interest. Then she talked about the success of the season.
"SOS, Waypoint and (Infinity Peer Support Services) have day programs and a lot of our people took advantage of that," she said. "But our program ending in a few weeks is causing a great deal of anxiety. These people need a place to go."
More: Willand Warming Center tent city tension leads to talks, but no easy solutions
Rochester is in line to receive opioid settlement money, and Malone said it puts the city in a position to make a difference.
"We need this shelter for our people with complicated needs," she said. "Some of them are not good fits for other programs, but they still need somewhere to go or they will get further from any progress they have made."
Shelter leaders recently met with mayors of the Tri-Cities and other stakeholders to air concerns and begin talks about solutions.
Talks on Willand Warming Center and solutions will continue: public invited
Melena Lugo, another director of Karlee's Home Team, thanked city officials for giving them three extra service days, so they could work on addressing what happens next for their clients.
"On the first day, we connected 37 people to services," said Lugo. "That means everything from getting their ID to health services they will not get otherwise."
Lugo said they have set up a public meeting, to further explore the need and ideas to help the unhoused population. She invited everyone to attend, on March 26, at 6 p.m., in the Frisbie Education Building, located at 11 Whitehall Road.
Many people spoke, some with personal stories to tell and others from organizations working to help.
Unhoused community and advocates urge city leaders to do more
Aquila Robinson, a founder of New Hampshire Harm Reduction, talked about being homeless when she was 17, forced to live in her mini van. She is now a resident of Rochester.
"People are homeless for many reasons and they are not all drug addicts," Robinson said. "They are teachers, doctors and they are veterans. I volunteer there and when I ask who is a veteran, the numbers to me are inconceivable. There is a woman who comes there in a wheelchair, having one leg, an elderly deaf man and a woman on oxygen. Are we expected to ask them to survive until we can see them again next November? I will never forget having nowhere to go, and we will continue to do whatever we can to help. We need this."
"I am president of Rochester Fellowship Kitchen," Elaine Menard said. "We are a collaboration of churches, nonprofits and local businesspeople. We provide meals. When we started 41 years ago, we fed kids, with a sandwich, a doughnut and a juice box. Now we offer hot, nutritious meals. We know if Willand was full time, it could offer so many more services and might help turn lives around."
Rochester resident Jesse Meserve talked about the failure of the system to help her brother, and a close friend. She said her brother, who had substance use disorders, almost died on the streets because no cared and is now in prison, in the psych unit.
"I lost a friend, and she was everything to me," said Meserve. "It was devastating. These people are somebody's somebody. I volunteer there and now they are my somebodies. Please help them."
Heather Walker-McConihe, executive director of Infinity Peer Support Services, told her story of being in active addiction, and homeless.
"People helped me and I turned my life around," she said. "I am so grateful that I had that support. This shelter is doing amazing work. And it sits empty all summer. Please take the cost of this, and of not having anyplace, and the good it does into consideration."
No comments came from the councilors, who typically do not respond during public comment sessions.
This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Rochester council urged to do more for homeless, keep shelter open
