Niceville church opens cold night shelter for families and elderly residents

Generations United Church has opened a cold night emergency shelter to serve families with children and elderly residents during dangerous winter weather in Niceville.

“This shelter represents our commitment to Just One More, one more person, one more family, one more member of our community recognizing the love of Christ,” said Lead Pastor Tommy Brown. “No family should have to choose between staying warm and staying safe, and no elderly resident should face that danger alone.”

The source reports that only one cold night shelter currently serves families with children in Okaloosa County: the Crestview Area Shelter for the Homeless, located approximately 20 miles from Niceville. The church is partnering with existing county shelters to arrange transportation for adults without children.

Elder Kelli Hernandez, who oversees community outreach, said the distance to other shelters creates hardship for local families.

The shelter will provide warm overnight accommodations, personal cots and bed linens, hot meals and beverages, basic hygiene facilities and hygiene kits, and connections to community resources. It will also offer a supervised environment for children and accessibility accommodations for elderly guests, a practical way of protecting those least able to protect themselves (Proverbs 31:8-9). Church volunteers will staff the facility from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. on activation nights.

Community members can check shelter status by calling the church office at 850-678-2531, visiting the church’s Facebook page at facebook.com/genuchurch, or monitoring local weather alerts and community announcements.

Generations United Church has served the Niceville community for more than 80 years, providing spiritual guidance, community support and outreach programs.

Source: Read the original report