Carlton For Congress issued the following announcement on March 16.
As efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 continue, those experiencing homelessness in Boise are not being left behind.
Staff at both of Boise's overnight shelter organizations are beginning new screening procedures, cleaning measures and will be separating sick residents from the rest of the population in an effort to slow the spread of the disease. Both Interfaith Sanctuary and the separate shelters for men and women and their children are open dormitories, making it easy for the contagious disease to spread without preventive measures.
Although there are only five confirmed cases in Idaho so far, Interfaith Sanctuary Executive Director Jodi Peterson-Stigers said those experiencing homelessness are vulnerable to getting seriously ill from COVID-19 for a variety of reasons. This includes the prevalence of chronic medical conditions such as coughs, diabetes and osteoporosis, along with lack of access to preventative medical care and hygiene on a regular basis. Plus, without a home of their own they cannot self-isolate like other Boiseans.
“They’re kind of set up to fail in a way, but I believe the county, city and agencies are doing a great job creating bandwidth for them to be safe and have a better chance of making it through this,” Peterson-Stigers said.
Families will soon be moved to another location in order to free up more dormitory space, but Peterson-Stigers could not provide additional details as of Monday.
Upon entering the shelter beginning Monday, all residents will be asked additional screening questions to see if they have symptoms and have their temperature checked. Any resident with a temperature reading of higher than 100.4 will be not permitted to stay at Interfaith Sanctuary, which allows both men, women and children to stay in one building. Instead, they will be moved to a separate dormitory at either the River of Life men’s shelter or the City Light shelter for women and children operated by Boise Rescue Mission Ministries.
Peterson-Stigers said she expects some resistance from residents who may not want to stay at the Rescue Mission shelters, which are known for having stricter rules than Interfaith, but she will be pushing for residents to band together to protect each other.
There is some reluctance, but we as a shelter have to say, ‘We’re in this together and we have to do everything we can to keep this population safe,’” she said. “We’re not asking to do this forever, but we’re asking you to do the right thing now.”
A staff member of Boise Rescue Mission was unavailable for an interview Monday, but a news release from the organization said they are in contact with government agencies and have planned extensively for the disease.
“All of us will continue to pray for God’s blessing over our community and His wisdom as we respond to this situation,” the release said. “We also pray for those infected and the families of those deceased from the virus.”
Instruction cards with information on COVID-19 and how to stop its spread will be distributed to Interfaith Sanctuary shelter guests, anyone with a cough will be required to wear a mask and all residents will be trained to clean any surface they touch immediately with spray bottles full of bleach and water.
DAY SHELTER REDUCES HOURS
Things will change for shelter residents during the day as well. Corpus Christi House day shelter nearby will be limiting its hours from 7 a.m. until 2 p.m. due to a lack of volunteers, according to Board Member Marc Schlegel-Preheim. The shelter will only be serving breakfast, and visitors will only be allowed inside for hygiene, instead of just a place to spend time. The back patio will still be open to visit.
“We’re trying to still offer people the dignities of life in terms of a shower and a bathroom, but without the congregating,” he said. “That’s the biggest change that we’re doing.”
This leaves those who eat lunch at the day shelter without that guaranteed daytime meal. Peterson-Stigers said her shelter and nonprofit Astegos will be working to provide food to those in need in its yard, without having volunteers going inside the shelter. She called for anyone who is young and healthy to volunteer to serve meals and prepare food while older or immunocompromised volunteers need to stay at home.
Meal service), I think, is one of my biggest concerns with being hit the hardest is the ability for our community to be able to come into our system to help us and the numbers of people we’ll have to provide nutrition for to continue to go up on a regular basis,” Peterson-Stigers said.
Outside of Corpus Christi House, Peterson-Stigers said those experiencing homelessness are facing a narrowing window of places they can go during the day. Bathrooms in city parks are not scheduled to open for use until next month.
On Monday, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean announced the closure of all city buildings, including public libraries. Peterson-Stigers said she would be open to a special arrangement where the library could stay open and be staffed by shelter employees, but there has been no word from the city that anything like this is in the works.
“With Corpus (Christi House) closing at 2 p.m., the library is their best option even if we’re providing staffing to help manage the group, but give them a safe place to be,” Peterson-Stigers said. “Those are the kinds of things we’re trying to address and we’ll see what happens.”
The Women’s and Children’s Alliance, a secure domestic violence shelter, also is taking steps to increase its cleaning during the outbreak. Chris Davis, communications manager for the nonprofit, said she could not give concrete details about their procedures because they are changing “minute to minute,” but she said WCA will continue to operate and provide services for anyone in need.
Davis also encouraged anyone in need to call 208-343-7025 for WCA’s 24/7 hotline.
“We do know in times like this if people are in danger of domestic violence those situations can become more volatile,” she said.
Original source here.
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