By Dewey Terrill
JC Post
There will be a meet and greet for the public at the Fresh Start Shelter, 136 W. 3rd Street on July 30 from 3-5 p.m. Hot dogs, chips and music will be provided.
Efforts have been under way to get the facility back up and running after it had been closed for a few months. The shelter is now open four hours per day for assistance, explained Todd Kyle. "We still will provide specific needs as far as maybe job help or food help or maybe medical help, things of that nature."
Officials hope to open it fulltime in late September. Tonette Hammond noted that there is a big need for the facility in the community. "We do have people variously staying in parks, staying on church benches and stuff like that."
Lack of funding was a problem for the 17-room shelter that led to the earlier closure but now efforts are under way to seek funding and get organizations that provided help in the past to resume those efforts.
There is a new 13-member board of directors working to help get the shelter back open full time by late September.