Homelessness in Winter
Nobody likes to be outside during the bitter cold winter months, but for the nearly 12,000 homeless people in the D.C. metropolitan area, there isn’t a choice.
Known as "Hypothermia Season," the months of winter are the most dangerous for homeless people, with an increase in fatalities and injuries due to exposure to the cold.
A number of local homeless shelters work to provide a safe, warm place for homeless to go. In the District, the N Street Village provides food, clothing, showers, transitional and permanent housing, mental and physical health care, and support to re-enter the workforce, daily basis to more than 600 women. St. Luke’s Shelter helps homeless men in northwest D.C. by providing emergency and transitional housing, vocational training, and case management.
In Maryland, the Montgomery County Coalition of the Homeless organizes a number of programs to help area homeless people. They include permanent supportive housing for single individuals, families, and people with disabilities; emergency shelters; low-income, transitional housing; and case management, skills development classes, activities, and psychiatric healthcare.
The Carpenter’s Shelter, in Alexandria, Va., also has a number of housing programs, including a day shelter with laundry, shower, and storage facilities; a winter shelter, coordinated with Alexandria churches; a residential shelter; transitional housing; aftercare program for case management; and educational, vocational, and life skills classes. Last winter, they served more than 300 people at their emergency winter shelter, which is open from November to April on a "one-night-at-a-time" basis.
If you see a homeless person that you believe is suffering from hypothermia, you should call the DC Hypothermia Hotline at 1-800-535-7252.
For more information, contact:
N Street Village
1333 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 939-2076 (phone)
(202) 319-1508 (fax)
www.nstreetvillage.org
St. Luke’s Shelter
3655 Calvert Street NW
Washington, DC 20007
(202) 337-4275 (phone)
(202) 333-4899 (fax)
www.stlukesshelter.org
Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless
600-B East Gude Drive
Rockville, MD 20850
(301) 217-0314 (phone)
(301) 217-0824 (fax)
www.mcch.net
Carpenter’s Shelter
930 N. Henry Street
Alexandra, VA 22314
(703) 548-7500 (phone)
(703) 548-3167 (fax)
www.carpentersshelter.org/index.html
